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Advertise on Cineuropa Logos and Banners IFFR 2025 Harbour by Olivia Popp 10/02/2025 - Bergur Bernburg presents a collage-like Icelandic docufiction a formally fascinating but occasionally overly free-flying examination of defying biomedical diagnoses Described in a subtitle card as “a journey into the unknown territories of the human mind”, Bergur Bernburg's world-premiering IFFR Harbour title Storm Alerts takes a lightly avant-garde jab at a biomedically driven experience of the world through a docufictional lens With a script by Jón Atli Jónasson and Bernburg the film follows Marteinn Helgi Sigurðsson whom we are introduced to as an “unmarried man in his forties who holds a doctorate in Old Norse from Cambridge University” an assistant professor at the University of Copenhagen and a highly accomplished scholar of Viking and Medieval Norse studies Sigurðsson’s plight is a prolonged case of depression and anxiety attacks related to “unfinished research projects” that are suggested to fit a conventional biomedical diagnosis of bipolar disorder describing his patient’s case file as “their portrait of me” and “their take on reality” he is sceptical at seeing the complexity distilled down to box-checking Through talking-head interviews with his colleagues archival footage from his past and encounters with the academic himself we first learn about Sigurðsson more as the outside world sees him: dedicated the scholar actively condemns a shift in academic focus away from history and critical thinking reflecting his internal discord and discontent with the world around him He further recounts his experiences with his mental condition the film then takes a turn into the more surrealist closer to the halfway point where Sigurðsson is fictionalised in unspeaking scenes by performer Kristján Ingimarsson including his interactions with a snooty psychiatrist (Kurt Ravn) we also hear how his mental state devolved Stitched together by external clips – such as those of animals and nature – and footage from films Storm Alerts’ second-half messiness takes us into what might be imagined as the inner mind of the academic Intercut in between are colourful and sped-up euphoric/manic sequences cheesy fake advertisements for luxury “hotels” (a nod to mental-health treatment centres) and brainrot-esque pieces that fight for attention with a set of calming moments with the professor himself The movie’s choice of music during several frantic moments also takes a front seat where several sequences are accompanied by Ravel’s famous orchestral piece “Bolero” The song notably features a march-like percussion foundation and an enchanting woodwinds-heavy melodic line which can be read as Sigurðsson’s coexisting but conflicting and intricate sides to his personality Storm Alerts is a fascinating approach to questioning the strict biomedical frameworks to which we are subjected although its late-film controlled chaos occasionally grows difficult to grasp onto as it intentionally defies description and order it’s still a bold move to try and give us an 80-minute look into Sigurðsson’s mental life something that can’t be either logically or emotionally replicated in a precise way where the most important takeaways are the rollercoaster feelings of confusion given that Sigurðsson is experiencing the same Storm Alerts is an Icelandic-Danish production by Firnindi Films and ResearchGruppen Aps, in cooperation with Kristján Ingimarsson Company and Sagafilm Its world sales are also managed by Firnindi Films Please subscribe to our newsletter to receive more stories like this directly in your inbox Bergur Bernburg presents a collage-like Icelandic docufiction, a formally fascinating but occasionally overly free-flying examination of defying biomedical diagnoses   10/02/2025 | IFFR 2025 | Harbour The leading Scandinavian market is gearing up for its 26th edition, and will welcome new projects by Lisa Langseth, Hlynur Pálmason, Maria Sødahl, Ester Martin Bergsmark and Shahrbanoo Sadat   13/01/2025 | Göteborg 2025 | Göteborg Industry We take a closer look at seven of the non-fiction projects pitched recently at the Malmö-based gathering   30/09/2022 | Nordisk Panorama 2022 02/05/2025goEast 2025 Review: My Magical World 30/04/2025Films / Reviews – Italy Review: San Damiano 30/04/2025Hot Docs 2025 Review: King Matt the First 29/04/2025Films / Reviews – Italy Review: Storia di una notte 29/04/2025Films / Reviews – Peru/Spain Review: Kayara. La guerrera del Imperio Inca 29/04/2025Hot Docs 2025 Review: Supernatural Subscribe to our newsletter to receive the most important daily or weekly news on European cinema Cannes 2025 Marché du Film AFCI runs its second annual Global Film Commission Network Summit at Marché du Film Festivals / Awards Czech Republic Czech Republic’s Anifilm goes sci-fi Distribution / Releases / Exhibitors Europe European Arthouse Cinema Day set to return on 23 November Cannes 2025 Marché du Film Indie Sales presents a three-star line-up at Cannes HOFF 2025 The Shadow and U Are the Universe win at Estonia’s Haapsalu Horror and Fantasy Film Festival Crossing Europe 2025 Awards The New Year That Never Came and The Flats crowned at Crossing Europe Cannes 2025 Marché du Film Be For Films to sell Love Me Tender in Cannes Cannes 2025/Sponsored Latvia set to shine bright at Cannes, led by Sergei Loznitsa’s competition entry Two Prosecutors Las Palmas 2025 MECAS/Awards Manuel Muñoz Rivas and Joana Carro win awards at the eighth MECAS Cannes 2025 Marché du Film Playtime to present some high-impact and entrancing trump cards at Cannes Production / Funding Italy Shooting begins on Walter Fasano’s Nino, a portrait of scoring maestro Nino Rota goEast 2025 Market TrendsFOCUSA busy spring festival season awaits the European film industry. Cineuropa will continue to keep its readers up to date with the latest news and market insights, covering the buzziest events, including Cannes, Kraków, Karlovy Vary, Tribeca, Hot Docs, Annecy, Brussels, Munich and many others Distribution, Exhibition and Streaming – 02/05/2025Slovak crime-thriller Černák becomes the highest-grossing film in domestic cinemasThe second film in the saga about a local mafia boss, directed by Jakub Króner, outgrossed its first part, which dominated Slovak cinemas last year Animation – 30/04/2025Mirko Goran Marijanac • Media sales executive, DeAPlaneta EntertainmentDuring our chat, the exec shared key insights from this year’s Cartoon Next and touched on the current climate for the animation sector Jaśmina Wójcik • Director of King Matt the First The Polish director discusses her approach to taking on a 1920s children’s literary classic in an unexpected way Želimir Žilnik • Director of Eighty Plus The Serbian director discusses his deep suspicion of ideologies in relation to his irresistibly charming latest feature, which follows a man whose life spans three political systems Paulina Jaroszewicz • Distribution and marketing manager, New Horizons Association Cineuropa sat down with the Polish distributor to discuss her company’s strategy as well as the connection between its distribution line-up and BNP Paribas New Horizons Festival’s programme Lorcan Finnegan • Director of The Surfer The Irish filmmaker discusses his mystery-thriller, how he created the character with Nicolas Cage and his approach to the use of colours in the film Privacy Policy The images used on this website have been provided by journalists and are believed to be free of rights if you are the owner of an image used on this website and believe that its use infringes on your copyright We will remove the image in question as soon as possible We have made reasonable efforts to ensure that all images used on this website are used legally and in accordance with copyright laws About us | Contact us | Logos and Banners MissionPartnersTeamDonationsTerms and conditions Please enable JS and disable any ad blocker Mädchen in Uniform is screening at Film Forum’s SAPPH-O-RAMA Film Festival on Tuesday The first thing you should know about this Prussian women’s boarding school: You’ll find more lingering glances within its walls than at a Smith College library on a Friday night grieving teenager Manuela (Hertha Thiele) is sent to aforementioned boarding school for daughters of Prussian soldiers in Northern Germany She is heartily welcomed by a posse of endearing and occasionally mischievous girls They make it clear from the onset: they are enamored with their governess Fräulein von Bernburg (Dorothea Wieck) “Almost all the girls here have a crush on Miss von Bernburg.” Soon is stricken by infatuation (as evidenced by the hazy close-ups best achieved with a dab of petroleum jelly on the lens) While the girls embody a spirit of playfulness the atmosphere is stingy on kindness under the oppressive watch of the headmistress (Emile Unda) And God help the girl who tries to smuggle out a letter to parents decrying Sunday’s lack of food Mädchen in Uniform (Germany based on the 1930 play Gestern und heute (Yesterday and Today) by Christa Winsloe The subject of girl-on-girl desire is treated with a normalcy that might surprise the modern theatergoer given the puritanism that has gripped swaths of the U.S. But the film was made at a time when Germany enjoyed more artistic freedom under the liberal government of the Weimar Republic which held sway from the end of WWI in 1918 until the cementing of Hitler’s dictatorship in 1933 The movie played at Film Forum this weekend – the first of three showings as part of the SAPPH-O-RAMA Film Fest students with rapturous expressions kneel at the ends of their beds waiting for Governess Fräulein von Bernburg von Bernburg makes her rounds with a kiss to each forehead You would think a Manhattan audience has seen it all the full on affection reserved by Governess von Bernburg for her student draws a sizable gasp and awkward laughter from the house “I loved it!” says Sarah Cowan because these kids are so repressed,” adds fellow film-goer Ainara Tiefenthäler Ainara happens to be German and also notes the gender-neutral aspect of some of the language The sub-titles refer to “girls” [“Mädchen”] but the spoken German in the film is actually a gender-neutral “the children” [“die Kinder”] “…that’s what I thought was interesting about the gender neutral language,” Ainara says They use the words “the child” in the film They have desires that they’re living up through this fantasy because they’re all just smitten.” “But also if that was a movie now [in the US] that would be banned – or people would try to ban it.” the film was initially well-received and garnered excellent reviews “This all-woman film from Germany is more than a curiosity and a worthy artistic achievement It is a cinema phenomenon…Its memory will be for a long time a clearly defined emotion – that is the personal reaction of this hack” “It’s rare to see a movie that’s almost 100 years old and people are still laughing and engaging in this way,” Ainara tells GO “And it’s not even an American movie so the cultural context is completely different.” The happenings in the film reflect the real-world rise of authoritarianism Governess von Bernburg “has ideas that are clearly considered progressive in the school,” Sarah comments of an atmosphere that is all about grooming girls to become mothers of the soldiers that will fight for Germany “The dynamic with the headmistress and then the other teachers or governesses – you get the sense that they disagree with her authoritarian practices but they don’t say anything,” Sarah notices Ainara’s take: “The governess is just wanting them to grow into fully rounded happy humans.” After a school play put on to honor the headmistress Manuela creates a scandal in her tipsy state loudly declaring her love for the governess She is punished with isolation in “the sick room” Students and teachers are forbidden to speak with her But Governess von Bernburg breaks from the edict to try to offer comfort but the love must not be allowed to blossom which soon turns to hysteria and terror when Manuela can’t be found We see her begin to ascend a tall winding staircase Her classmates ring the bell in alarm and frantically call her name The Film Forum audience groaned with worry Would this be another lesbian film with a tragic ending “But it’s also beautiful how all the girls come together and save her because I feel like we all know so many movies where the kid gets bullied… here she clearly gets bullied by authorities but her peers come and embrace her,” says Ainara Mädchen in Uniform was banned by the Nazi’s He ordered all copies of the “degenerate” film burned He also didn’t like the hints that authoritarianism sucks Director Leontine Sagan fled for her life and playwright Christa Winsloe left Germany with lover Dorothy Thompson the first American journalist to be expelled from Nazi Germany in 1934 and met their demise in concentration camps Actor Hertha Thiele stood up to Goebbels when asked to appear in Nazi propaganda: “I don’t blow with the wind each time it changes directions.” She was blacklisted Some prints remained in Romania where a “longstockings and kissing” cult reportedly existed among Bucharest schoolgirls, no doubt helping ensure that the film survived. It was almost banned in the U.S., but got a limited release because Eleanor Roosevelt liked it certainly younger,” says West Village-resident She saw it this past weekend and remembers seeing it 50 years ago in a lesbian coffee house “The little bit of shame in our lives is less certainly for a younger audience than it was for me when I was in my twenties.” Now more savvy about filmmaking itself she appreciates the use of shadow and light I think it’s a remarkable film.” Mädchen in Uniform will hold additional screenings at Film Forum’s SAPPH-O-RAMA Film Festival on Tuesday Despite the looming presence of an increasingly anti-LGBTQ+ administration WorldPride 2025 will be a star-studded celebration of diversity—right in front of the Capitol Over 2 million fans showed up in person—but you can stream the whole show from your couch The Queer Women of Color Media Arts Project is celebrating LGBTQ+ BIPOC communities with its annual film festival Keegan Stewart’s photo series ‘Carabiners’ documents the popularity of the queer-coded fashion accessory The biggest show of Gaga’s career nearly became a target of hate Florida’s LGBTQ+ community has blocked every anti-queer bill this year This website is using a security service to protect itself from online attacks The action you just performed triggered the security solution There are several actions that could trigger this block including submitting a certain word or phrase You can email the site owner to let them know you were blocked Please include what you were doing when this page came up and the Cloudflare Ray ID found at the bottom of this page Salt mining is an ancient process; the deposits themselves can be several hundred million years old Such is the case at the Bernburg mine in Germany where esco (european salt company) extracts rock salt from a 250-million-year-old underground deposit Salt production here dates back to the Middle Ages Today esco relies on modern mining equipment to produce roughly 2 million tons of salt each year offering its customers a wide range of high-quality salt products including salt for chemical and industrial use as well as pharma and food-grade salts and de-icing salt Bernburg recently bought two new Sandvik LH621 underground loaders which have a high power-to-weight ratio that ensures faster cycle times An efficient Tier 4 diesel engine helps to minimize emissions underground © 2025 Copyright © Sandvik AB; (publ) Box 510 You don't have permission to access the page you requested What is this page?The website you are visiting is protected.For security reasons this page cannot be displayed It is an apt time to honor these pioneers: to recognize that we are here making compelling art from under the shadow of oppression A scene from 1931’s Mädchen in Uniform It has existed even as the world has changed and appearing in the most unlikely of places The gem of the collection is Mädchen in Uniform a revolutionary film about 14-year old Manuela (Hertha Thiele) after arriving at a strict Prussian boarding school becomes deeply infatuated with her teacher Adapted from a play written by Christa Winsloe it was saved from US censorship through the support of none other than Eleanor Roosevelt Mädchen in Uniform depicts lesbianism as a benediction in an otherwise unforgiving world In the midst of hunger and austerity – common afflictions in the dying days of the Weimar Republic – von Bernburg offers Manuela and her classmates compassion and understanding turning her face like a flower to her teacher’s light Dominated by stark shadows and looming hallways Mädchen in Uniform finds its softness in the love between women – not just in Manuela’s formative desire for von Bernburg but between the students themselves: constantly holding hands slinging their arms around one another’s shoulders The film shows its tender underbelly most when Manuela pictures the Fräulein the lines of her face softened and blurred by diffuse light taking on the ethereal quality of a daydream “What you call sin,” von Bernburg insists to the draconian headmistress in the film’s climax Gay love as a powerful force is turned on its head in 1924’s Michael who would go on to helm such silent classics as The Passion of Joan of Arc based on the 1902 novel by gay author Herman Bang Dreyer turns his camera toward the dissolution of the relationship between wealthy painter Claude Zoret (Benjamin Christensen) and the eponymous young model (Walter Slezak) who in turn seeks to use his proximity to wealth to ease her financial burdens Michael is essentially a study of shifting power especially as it pertains to the relationship between artist and muse often referred to as “der Meister” (or “the master”) But when it comes to Michael he finds himself helpless Dreyer’s camera lingers as Claude strokes his young lover’s hair shifting from beautifully composed wide shots to shadowed close-ups as Michael drifts away from Claude and into the countess’s arms Though their relationship is referred to as that of father and adopted son a subplot featuring a straying wife directly parallels the triangle between Claude as if to underscore the homoerotic nature of the film’s main pairing To see such a relationship between two men portrayed as early in 1924 is even as each frame resonates with the lingering ache of betrayal and loneliness A scene from 1933’s Victor and Victoria Not all was tragedy; there is also light and joy in these early films 1933’s Victor and Victoria revels in a spirit of freedom and playfulness as it subverts gender performance in a role that would be eventually played by Julie Andrews in the English-language remake) finds herself substituting for her partner-in-crime Victor (Hermann Thimig) in his vaudeville act in which he sings and dances as a woman named Victoria She becomes a woman playing a man playing a woman Once Susanne grows past her anxieties and fear of men’s changing rooms eventually landing herself and Victor in London entangled in a web of affections spun among society’s finest Susanne displays her expert slapstick mimicry of the rituals of masculinity: manspreading on a barstool capturing the attention of a woman from across a crowded room Gender is dramatized as nothing more than an act a complicated dance of carefully choreographed steps It’s a joy to watch Müller command entire scenes with little else than her wide eyes and knack for physical comedy Each horrified shake of her head is its own punchline as we watch her parade around in tailored suits and sing in supposed drag This was was the sunset of the Weimar Republic and Müller would die under suspicious circumstances in 1937 after refusing to appear in Nazi-produced films Though the Weimar Republic ended as quickly as it began and the LGBT community faced violent persecution under Nazi rule these films survive as a testament to not only the continued existence of queer cinema They paved the way for future queer narratives to unfold on screen — and not just because they were made and seen ranging from slow character studies to riotous musical comedies Therein lies its strength and lasting power As we approach another era in which fascism looms these fascinating films remind us that the most vulnerable have always struggled to have their voices heard Megan Sergison is a writer currently based in Somerville She can be found staring out of the windows of public transportation listening to film scores persuading anyone and everyone to watch Portrait of a Lady on Fire Loved reading about these early LGBTQ-oriented films that I never knew existed and about a time of bold exploration as the Weimar Republic died Loved reading this and learning more about queer films Δdocument.getElementById( "ak_js_1" ).setAttribute( "value" The Lady’s Dressing Room (1732) BY JONATHAN SWIFT Five hours (and who can do it less in?) By haughty Celia… but this Littlefield review has convinced me to make the purchase your comments reek of what is wrong in today's society and also if entitlement About Us Advertising/Underwriting Syndication Media Resources Editors and Contributors © 2025 The Arts Fuse. All Rights Reserved. Site by AuthorBytes by Alex Q. Arbuckle(opens in a new tab) August Landmesser (circled) refuses to salute during the launching of the Horst Wessel Germany held a ceremony to launch its latest sailing vessel named for a Nazi activist who was killed by communists in 1930 and treated as a martyr as part of party propaganda The event was headlined by a speech from Deputy Führer Rudolf Hess with Adolf Hitler at his side Wessel’s mother christened the ship with a bottle of champagne and the assembled crowd of workers and onlookers gave an enthusiastic Nazi salute August Landmesser was 26 years old when he stood in the crowd with his arms defiantly and conspicuously crossed He had joined the Nazi party in 1931 with the hope it would lead to a job but he was expelled from the party when in 1935 he became engaged to a Jewish woman Image: Fine Art Images/Heritage Images/Getty Images When they tried to escape to Denmark in 1937 and August was charged with “dishonoring the race.” Though he was initially acquitted he was soon arrested again and sent to the Börgermoor concentration camp She was moved from one concentration camp to another and ultimately killed at the Bernburg Euthanasia Centre in February 1942 He worked for a freight company for two years before being drafted into a penal battalion and killed in action in Croatia Ingrid and Irene were placed in an orphanage and later split up Ingrid went to live with her maternal grandmother and Irene bounced around foster families was transferred to the United States Coast Guard and rechristened Eagle she is today the only commissioned sailing vessel actively serving in the U.S The USCGC Eagle sails into New York harbor for bicentennial celebrations Wolfgang Wild Alex Q. Arbuckle Kindertransport: A desperate effort to save children from the Holocaust The old-school lumberjacks who felled giant trees with axes Antique mourning jewelry contained the hair of the deceased Rosie the Riveter IRL: Meet the women who built WWII planes The streets of 1970s New York City: A decade of urban decay grief at the scene of John Lennon's murder This WWII women's dorm was the hippest spot in town Rarely seen images from the Walt Disney Archives black gold: When oil derricks loomed over California beaches Chicago in ruins: The unimaginable aftermath of the Great Fire of 1871 This plant uses everything that lands in the bio-waste bin to generate environmentally-friendly biogas – and thus sustainable energy Climate-neutral energy source also increases independence from natural gas By treating the biogas resulting from bio-waste digestion the plant produces around 21,000 megawatt hours of biomethane each year Biomethane is a renewable energy form and a fully-fledged climate-neutral substitute for natural gas compared with full composting of the bio-waste without generating energy the bio-waste anaerobic digestion plant in Bernburg saves around 7,400 tonnes of CO2 That is roughly equivalent to the impact of converting 2,200 households to green electricity and around 300 households to green heat The biogas plant in Bernburg is therefore making a major contribution both to increasing our independence of fossil gas supplies and to protecting the climate Major contribution to sustainable circular economy Another benefit of the forward-looking combination of bio-waste digestion and biogas production is this: The state-of-the-art plant can process around 33,000 tonnes of bio-waste a year the digestion process also produces a ferment residue that can be put to valuable use in solid or liquid form in agriculture MVV is making a major contribution to building a sustainable circular economy and sparing the ever scarcer resources of our planet the plant also increases disposal and supply reliability and boosts the regional economy Project Number 67K12911 KSI: Construction of a new low-emission bio-waste anaerobic digestion plant in Bernburg (Saale) With its National Climate Protection Initiative (KSI) the Federal Ministry for the Environment has since 2008 launched and supported numerous projects that help to reduce greenhouse gas emissions Its programmes and projects cover a broad range of climate protection activities: From developing long-term strategies through to providing specific assistance and investment funding This variety guarantees a range of good ideas The National Climate Protection Initiative has helped to promote climate protection on a local level local authorities and educational facilities Mit unseren Online-Services können Sie alles Wichtige rund um Ihre Energieversorgung bequem von zu Hause aus erledigen Hier haben Sie Ihre Energiedaten immer im Blick Als Gewerbekunde der MVV Energie können Sie sich direkt anmelden Für das Netzgebiet Mannheim bieten wir über unser kostenloses Geoportal eine Internet-Planauskunft an Sie erhalten in der Regel Rückmeldung innerhalb von 24 Stunden Bei normalen Anfragen ist mit einer Bearbeitungsdauer von 2 – 3 Werktagen zu rechnen Emergency-Hotline: MVV Energie AG0800 / 290 1000 MVV Enamic GmbH MVV ImmoSolutions GmbH MVV EnergySolutions GmbH0800 / 3030 842Available 24/7 for technical incidents (smell of natural gas Postal AdressMVV Energie AG Luisenring 49 68159 Mannheimkontakt@remove-this.mvv.de Fri from 8-18 h Wed from 8-12 h and from 14-18 hThe self-service area in the MVV E.forum including automatic pay stations: Mo-Sa from 6.30-22 h MVV NachbarschaftsoaseGeorge-Washington-Straße 184 68309 Mannheim / Franklin Thu from 10.30-18 h Sa from 10-13 hInterested in joining MVV Energie as an employee Please find our current job opportunities in our "Bewerber" section (German only) Postal AdressMVV Energie AG Luisenring 49 68159 Mannheimgewerbekunden@remove-this.mvv.de Interested in joining MVV Energie as an employee Postal AdressMVV Energie AG Luisenring 49 68159 Mannheimpartner@remove-this.mvv.de MVV Energie Communications Head: Dr. Thomas Renz+49 (0) 621 / 290 5140  Telephone exchange:+49 (0) 621 / 290 0 Postal Address MVV Energie AG Luisenring 49 68159 Mannheim E-Mail: ir@remove-this.mvv.de Phone: +49 (0) 621 / 290 3708 Phone: +49 (0) 621 / 290 3075 Pour yourself a whiskey and snuggle up for this lez classic I have a confession to make: before starting this column I had only seen about 2 classic lesbian films When I admitted this to my fellow GO coworkers Two of them quickly listed off at least 10 films I needed to watch right away I rapidly wrote down the titles (for research I want to take you all along with me in my quest to review all of the lesbian classics through my Millennial queer lens. Last week, I reviewed the coming of age film “Pariah.”  I watched the first ever lesbian film made in Germany in 1931 I got home from work and cuddled up with my dog to watch a lesbian classic I didn’t know what film to choose from (my list is long as I haven’t seen so many amazing queer films) The very first lesbian film was made in 1931 Germany I’d heard of the film before but couldn’t believe that it was made in 1931 “Mädchen in Uniform” translates in English to “Girls in Uniform” and the film has been made multiple times. I decided to stick with the original, which is based off of the 1930 play “Gestern und heute” (Yesterday and Today) by Christa Winsloe which supposedly has a much stronger lesbian plot-line than the film I watched I poured myself an eggnog whiskey and snuggled up for this pivotal lesbian film with the lead character Manuela von Meinhardis transitioning into a brand new boarding school after the death of her mother This was a time when discipline and rules was a standard at this school But soon after becoming acclimated to this new environment Most of the girls at the boarding school are around 14-years-old and even though this film was made in 1931 — it shows that the teen experience is relatable through the decades The girls bond as they brush each others’ hair and talk about their unified crush on teacher Fräulein von Bernburg This is brought up in the most blasé of ways — like it’s totally normal to have same-sex attraction (which of course it is but this portrayal was shocking for a film made in 1931) Manuela finds her crush on Bernburg to grow in intensity more so than her peers And the pivotal “lesbian moment” in the film happens when Bernberg goes around kissing each of the girls goodnight on their foreheads and when she gets around to Manuela she plants one on her lips Manuela dramatically falls into her arms and you can see the young girl is infatuated with this older woman I wonder if this is where the stereotypical student/teacher lesbian romance storyline came from — or if there were books predating this that set the stage this was a risqué and transgressive film to be released in 1931 — especially in pre-Nazi Germany right before Hitler took power and WWII began you get to experience Manuela’s first love and all of the intense and dramatic feelings that come with the experience And while they never mention queerness or even the word lesbian — there are undertones of Manuela’s coming out process and Bernburg’s understanding of the young girls’ experience I was definitely nervous about this romantic crush between Manuela and her (much) older teacher being weird or creepy — the way Bernburg maneuvered the situation was actually very kind She knew that Manuela had feelings for her and she gently and compassionately talked to the teen about her feelings It seemed to me that Bernburg was a lesbian herself and wanted to help Manuela as she processed her feelings all while making sure nothing *actually* happened (besides the goodnight kiss) I think that Manuela was seeking affirmation and love from Bernburg in part because she just lost her mother and Bernburg was a kind and nurturing woman to her The climax happens when Manuela and her peers are celebrating after they just put on a play for the headmistress and her friends The girls are drinking a boozy punch and getting tipsy together while dancing Manuela decides to make a proclamation of her love for Bernburg and let the girls know that she thinks it might be requited by Bernburg Just as she is shouting this out for her peers to know — the headmistress walks in Manuela is swiftly punished and sent to a solitary corridor she tells the nurse “I can’t even think straight.” I chuckled to myself wondering if that was a sneaky way to let the audience know she was coming out you watch Manuela prepare to throw herself off of the stairwell in fear of isolation from her peers and in fear of never seeing Bernburg again While Bernburg is getting scolded by the headmistresses she has a telepathic moment with Manuela — which is like the gayest thing ever…and so romantic I’m pretty sure we’ve all felt that connection with someone we’ve loved Manuela is rescued by her peers who then protest against the headmistress by showing her how unjust she’s treating them all It’s a powerful ending and statement to be made Fraulein von Bernburg: You must come to your senses Fraulein von Bernburg: You’re not allowed to love me… so much In 1932, the New York Times reviewed the film and said: “It is actually more of a rap on the knuckles for the militaristic notions than an exposition of unnatural affection.” The film made subtle but strong messages of progress and compassion and feminine power The film has only women actresses and was written by Christa Winsloe directed by Leontine Sagan with artistic direction from Carl Froelich Froelich was the only man involved in the production of this film That is something that rarely happens in Hollywood today This film holds historical importance for so many reasons — it is the first display of lesbian affection on the big screen It normalizes same-sex attraction and delves into the emotions behind a first love The snow was starting pile up in my backyard as I shut my laptop — and I found myself feeling a strong sense of appreciation for the history of my community and the women trans and nonbinary folks who have pushed society forward towards love and compassion for our nuanced experiences Corinne Kai is the Managing Editor and resident sex educator at GO Magazine. You can listen to her podcast Femme, Collectively just stalk her on Instagram Directed by a woman and without a single man in the cast Mädchen in Uniform marked the way out ahead for queer cinema in its groundbreaking exploration of lesbian desire at a girls’ boarding school Leontine Sagan’s Mädchen in Uniform (1931) is a remarkable film in many respects – first and foremost in that it was produced at all Not only was a female filmmaker at the helm (directing an all-female cast but it is also one of the first truly significant queer films ever made Despite several decades of censorship and suppression it survived to become an enduring touchstone for generations of queer filmgoers and the tropes and themes the film established came to define much of the LGBTIQ+ fiction and film that followed in its wake the very first explicitly and politically queer-themed feature had also been a German production: Anders als die Andern (Different from the Others) (1919) A well-intentioned but slightly creaky morality play the film had been co-written by sexologist Magnus Hirschfeld whose Berlin-based Institute for Sexual Science had partly funded the production Thanks to the tireless work of Hirschfeld and others Germany (and Berlin in particular) had become something of a LGBT mecca engendering a cultural climate conducive to an emergent queer cinema’s first baby-steps But whereas Anders als die Andern had presented the plight of poor Conrad Veidt in a sympathetic but straightforwardly polemical fashion Mädchen in Uniform would consciously shift on-screen queerness further into the realm of the intimate and the sensual as she is unwillingly shipped off to a stiflingly repressive all-girls boarding school Manuela immediately finds herself at odds with the militaristic discipline demanded by the school’s hard-hearted headmistress Fräulein von Nordeck zur Nidden (Emilia Unda) It seems the institution has little to offer Manuela until she is introduced to one of her teachers the striking Fräulein von Bernburg (Dorothea Wieck) Fräulein von Bernburg values compassion and even ‘love’ in teaching as much as she does discipline – so much so that “all the girls have a crush on Fräulein von Bernburg.”  Sensing that Manuela is in need of a nurturing maternal presence (she lost her mother as a young child) Fräulein von Bernburg seems to lavish special care and attention on her new charge Manuela soon becomes infatuated with her teacher an adolescent rumbling that is galvanised into a full-blown crush in the film’s most iconic scene Manuela witnesses a bedtime ritual peculiar to Fräulein von Bernburg’s dormitory: the teacher sends each of her students off to sleep with a gentle peck With Manuela last in line to receive her goodnight kiss director Leontine Sagan suffuses the sequence with a queasy By the time Fräulein von Bernburg reaches Manuela’s bed Sagan has brought the sequence to a fever pitch the crescendo: not a kiss on the forehead or the cheek romantic; not only in its text but also in its form close-ups of a forlorn Manuela (reminiscent of Carl Dreyer’s famous close-ups in his 1928 silent film The Passion of Joan of Arc) to its use of dissolves that imply an almost psychic connection between student and teacher Sagan’s direction often emphasises the ineffable over the material Although it’s undoubtedly a socially conscious film – it ends with a fairly unmissable plea for tolerance and understanding – it deftly obfuscates its political goals with this palpably hormonal depiction of young love What’s even more impressive is the way it seems to have been consciously constructed to reflect a universal experience (the pangs and pain of a teenage crush) without ever losing sight of the narrative’s queer specificity The question of whether or not Manuela’s feelings for Fräulein von Bernburg are reciprocated is left ambiguous just as the moral quandaries that this would raise are left unexplored words like ‘homosexuality’ never appear in Mädchen in Uniform The waters of Manuela and her classmates’ burgeoning sexualities are continually muddied; it might initially seem that the sapphic camaraderie and talk of crushes on teachers are merely for the lack of boys But when Manuela tipsily announces her love for Fräulein von Bernburg after her rousing cross-dressed performance in the school play the stunned silence of her peers makes it clear that a taboo has been transgressed the true nature and depth of Manuela’s feelings are unmistakable as is her fear of how they might dictate the course of her life The phenomenon that Mädchen in Uniform manages most effectively to elucidate is the extent to which a certain degree of homosocial affection had been expected and overlooked in the context of youthful these feelings were not permitted to ‘mean’ anything opines headmistress von Nordeck zur Nidden to a fellow faculty member “and god willing mothers of soldiers too.” It’s easy to imagine this exploration of society’s restriction of sapphic impulses to a particular stage of life resonating with both openly queer women and those who had felt compelled to understand themselves as straight unable to find video https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=UvaE2SPvwfE and the UK’s lead organisation for film and the moving image and the tropes and themes the film established came to define much of the LGBTIQ+ fiction and film that followed in its wake.  whose Berlin-based Institute for Sexual Science had partly funded the production.  Mädchen in Uniform would consciously shift on-screen queerness further into the realm of the intimate and the sensual Fräulein von Nordeck zur Nidden (Emilia Unda) “all the girls have a crush on Fräulein von Bernburg.”  an adolescent rumbling that is galvanised into a full-blown crush in the film’s most iconic scene Manuela witnesses a bedtime ritual peculiar to Fräulein von Bernburg’s dormitory: the teacher sends each of her students off to sleep with a gentle peck. With Manuela last in line to receive her goodnight kiss and the unsaid over the permissible.  What’s even more impressive is the way it seems to have been consciously constructed to reflect a universal experience (the pangs and pain of a teenage crush) without ever losing sight of the narrative’s queer specificity words like ‘homosexuality’ never appear in Mädchen in Uniform as is her fear of how they might dictate the course of her life nor could they be carried into womanhood.  had felt compelled to understand themselves as straight By 2015-09-15T18:47:00+01:00 Icelandic filmmaking veteran Fridrik Thor Fridriksson returns to Toronto with Horizon which he directed alongside photographer and budding filmmaker Bergur Bernburg is about influential Icelandic landscape painter Georg Gudni Hauksson When Fridriksson ran a Reykjavik art gallery decades ago he first met the young painter.  For the new film who had been planning a project about Gudni after interviewing him in the 2000s is seen explaining his philosophies of life and art in archival interviews that were done for different projects This archival material is interwoven with looks at his paintings art historians and Gudni appreciators such as Viggo Mortensen Horizon sales are handled by Fridrikson’s own Icelandic Film Corporation; the Iceland-Denmark production is backed by the Icelandic Film Centre Fridriksson and Bernburg also produce the film alongside Bill Rathje and Magnús Árni Skúlason who was Oscar nominated in 1992 for Children of Nature has been to Toronto with a slew of past films including Mama Gogo in 2010 Bernburg: We met in 1991 and had done some smaller projects together In 2012 we started talking about the possibilities and trying to figure what material was around Together we created a different approach to the project he seemed very open in talking about his work But he was very clear when he did talk about his work Bernburg: When he saw you were really interested in his work How does this film reflect the art he made Very specifically in the Icelandic film industry many Icelandic films have used the landscape too much and people stop following the story and are distracted by the landscape Bernburg: He says at one point in the movie that he has to know the landscape before he can paint it…one of the issues we had with the movie is that we didn’t want to tell people what he was painting Like he says you want to reflect on your own thoughts Why does his work mean something special to each of you Bernburg: It’s also interesting for his take on things When he explains his attitude towards things Fridriksson: Usually people don’t like to go out when it’s windy and rainy but that’s something in common with my films and his paintings I started to appreciate so-called ‘nasty weather’ and turn it into beauty A valley full of fog is more beautiful than one that is clear How did you make sure the score by Kjartan Hólm (a touring member of Sigur Ros) didn’t overwhelm the images Bernburg: It was important that it didn’t overpower…It’s a little like cooking it’s not so difficult to make a hot chili con carne so the meat disappears But here the raw material is very delicate And if you cook too many ingredients together it might be a mess why did you want to collaborate on this film Fridriksson: When I saw the material they already had I saw a great potential… This stuff really touched me it was almost like Gudni was alive.  He was a lovely man Are you hoping more people will discover his art through this film Fridriksson: I think for art students now it’s very important to see this film Bernburg: The horizon isn’t really anything It’s depending on your own mood and maybe the lighting in the room there is a lot of space left for the visitor to bring his own ideas Monday’s statement to reporters follows Truth Social The posting on Trump’s Truth Social platform is sending shockwaves around the world US industry frantically working out possible next steps Read Screen International’s daily magazines from the Toronto International Film Festival here Screen International is the essential resource for the international film industry access to the Screen International archive and supplements including Stars of Tomorrow and World of Locations Site powered by Webvision Cloud 9Here are nine of the strangest motoring awards you've probably never heard ofAdvertisement - Page continues belowTop GearNewsletterThank you for subscribing to our newsletter. 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Look out for your regular round-up of news New hf/f/s machines at a new plant fill medical solutions into the bags An unusual hf/f/s machine (above) is shown running at the equipment supplier?s facility The machine was scheduled for shipmentAs this magazine went to press Serum-Werk Bernburg AG began filling intravenous medical solutions into a new plastic bag structure Germany-based maker of human and veterinary medical products is reportedly the first company worldwide to use a material called Propyflex® in rollstock form for IV bags used by hospitals Propyflex was developed by Sengewald Verpackungen GmbH Sengewald is owned by Pactiv Inc.(Lake Forest Packaging World is told there are no U.S.-based users of the material yet The 200-micron (8-mil) Propyflex film is a three-layer coextrusion containing an outer layer of pharmaceutical-grade homopolymer polypropylene/a blend of PP and styrene butadiene and styrene (SEBS)/a blend of PP and SEBS Sengewald began manufacturing Propyflex in May using new equipment that it prefers not to identify equipped with two new horizontal form/fill/seal machines The Model FFS 773 hf/f/s machines come from Plumat Maschinenbau Serum-Werk is the first company to use this particular model which produces Propyflex bags from rolls of tubular film rather than more conventional flat film The machines were scheduled for delivery in late December to Serum-Werk's new 1길 sq m (5곙 sq') Bernburg plant One machine produces IV bags with a single tube port; the other bags with two ports Serum-Werk will fill the bags primarily with saline Hospitals can use one port to deliver the solution to the patient while a second port can be used by medical personnel to infuse drugs into the solution Serum-Werk will sell the bags to hospitals in Germany fill and seal the Propyflex material into four different bag/product sizes: a 5.3" x 5.9" bag for 250 mL of solution; a 5.3" x 7.9" bag for 500 mL; a 5.3" x 11.4" for 1-L; and a 7.9" x 11.8" bag for a 2-L size The bags will be used for 25 different medical liquids managing director for Human Products at Serum-Werk Schmuck discussed the project with PW after we learned of this application at Pack Expo in Chicago in November "Using the Propyflex bag is a strategy that focuses on getting new business," says Schmuck "Each machine has the capacity to produce three million bags a year if we run one eight-hour shift So that's six million bags for the two machines we expect to sell two-and-a-half to three million bags in our first year." Schmuck anticipates volume will be strong enough in the near future to make in-house form/fill/sealing more cost-effective than having an outside firm fill pre-made bags Propyflex bags have several attributes that benefit Serum-Werk much like the soft polyvinyl chloride bags Serum-Werk and other IV bagmakers sell They also function like traditional bags and include a hanger hole But they don't use plasticizers that make soft PVC bags flexible plasticizers could potentially migrate into the medical solution the material in the Propyflex structure doesn't carry PVC's perceived environmental disadvantages The new structure also protects against water vapor loss which is the key barrier concern for these IV solutions the bags could lose water and become unsellable," Schmuck says he says the company saves about 10 Pfennig/bag Those savings help make the Propyflex material less costly than the PVC/PE combination "The new structure is more economical," confirms Schmuck The managing director points out that the decision to use Propyflex was made to add to the company's sales of IV solutions Schmuck intimates that Serum-Werk wanted to build its sales of these products in plastics Serum-Werk investigated other bag alternatives but considered those either too rigid to collapse well or too difficult to see through The company also believes the new bags empty the solutions more easily than other non-PVC alternatives that Serum-Werk considered "Propyflex is transparent and a hospital worker can look at the bag and immediately see how much fluid is in the bag or if anything is wrong with the contents," says Schmuck "Another important advantage is that the bag collapses well Sengewald ships rollstock of film in lay-flat tubular form to Serum-Werk Both L-shaped Plumat machines operate in much the same fashion Each hf/f/s machine produces three bags at a time A frame holds three separate stands for three rolls of film The film is electric motor-driven in a horizontal plane Film is driven past a printing station where a hot-foil stamper imprints the name of the solution usage instructions and a number that indicates the solution is approved by the German government film passes by a welding station that heat-seals two areas across the web or leading area that's sealed becomes the top of the bag While the seal is made completely across the bottom a small area is left unsealed at the top to accommodate the insertion of a tube (or two tubes) downstream a small hanger hole is also punched out of the film which is opened by both a mechanical device and vacuum Each bag passes through a transfer station where it continues at a right angle through the rest of the f/f/s process This section of the machine includes a racetrack-like conveyor to which are mounted numerous "holding pins." Pins are mounted in sets of two to accommodate bags with either one or two tubes Sengewald says the tubes are made by a third party under a licensing arrangement with Sengewald The material combines an inner layer of ethylene vinyl acetate and an outer layer identified only as a special blend of PP and elastomer the tube material is cut into the appropriate length The bag samples PW received had tubes measuring about 21/4" L The opening at the top of each bag is placed onto the pair of tube-carrying pins The tube (or tubes) is then heat-sealed in the bag about 5/8" of the tube is sealed in the bag Six tubes are sealed to six bags simultaneously The Plumat machine that inserts two tubes for each bag uses a second tube sealing station grippers deliver the bags to filling stations The first station fills half the solution into the bags which are then indexed to a second station for the final 50% of the fill the tube is closed off with the application of a polycarbonate/rubber stopper Grippers release the bags onto a conveyor where they're placed in trays for autoclave sterilization Sterilized bags are subsequently removed from trays by a robotic system before they're case-packed Bags are sold to and stored by hospitals at ambient temperatures and can be held for up to two years two new hf/f/s lines and new film structure represent a serious investment by Serum-Werk How does the company justify the financial outlay These bags give us a good way to compete with bottles and provide an alternative for PVC bags." It is believed that some of the risk taken by the company was offset by financial assistance from the government A Sengewald representative says this financial aid helps stimulate new investments in the former East Germany Serum-Werk "has shown the new bag at different exhibitions and sales meetings and the feedback we've received from the market has been positive," says Schmuck He indicates that some customers have said they will likely switch from bottles or PVC bags to this structure as it becomes available While Schmuck doesn't want the Propyflex bags to cannibalize current PVC bag sales he's aware that environmental concerns may eventually result in the new structure replacing PVC bags Serum-Werk is working to sell the bags not only in its home country