New Kaisertal City
New Kaisertal City
New Kaisertal City
Austria 2008
directed by
Melanie Hollaus
screenplay
Melanie Hollaus
cinematography
Valentin Sysel
music
Guenther Zechberger
sound
Valentin Sysel
editing
Valentin Sysel
cast
Melanie Hollaus,
Gunther Lieder
producer
Valentin Sysel
Melanie Hollaus
production
Brennweit Medienproduktion Valentin Sysel Innrain 10 6020 Innsbruck Austria
E office@brennweit.com
world sales
Brennweit Medienproduktion
format
HDV, barvni/colour
running time
35 min
Kaisertal is the last inhabited valley in Tyrol not connected by road to the rest of the world. The opening of a tunnel is about to bring change to the hitherto idyllic way of life there.
In the short documentary satire, the young Austrian director and scriptwriter Melanie Hollaus plays with her compatriots’ racial prejudices via a utopian vision of the future in Kaisertal valley. The statements of African and Asian immigrants alternate with the long takes of the mountainous landscape, blending, as the film progresses, into stereotype-breaking images of an ideal society without racial discriminations, where also the dark-skinned children yodel. The extremely deep focus of a digital camera establishes contact between the people in the foreground and the pristine nature in the background, while Hollaus’ directing covers a whole range, from the amateurishly documentary to the theatrically exaggerated film. A short film with a big social message.
»Two years ago, I read an article in the New York Times about 30 residents of the mountain valley Kaisertal, who live without a road to the outside world. During my first trip to this idyllic valley, I got the idea for the concept of the film. At first, I wanted to involve the inhabitants of the remote valley into writing a script on urban and rural stereotypes, but their shyness and fear made them decide against cooperating. I then changed the concept and included people of different cultures and nationalities who live in Tyrol today. In a few months, I spoke with more than 40 disadvantaged people, immigrants and asylum-seekers, in order to generate a script. The film should be seen as a political statement on the immigration problem in 'the holy land of Tyrol' (as it is called throughout Austria). In the centre of my work was the search for an adequate form of expression to show the complexity of immigration problems. «
Melanie Hollaus
Melanie Hollaus was born in Tyrol in 1980. Between 1999 and 2003, she studied dramaturgy. Afterwards, she worked in various areas of film production and photography. In 2002, she was the production assistant on the film Vollgas (2002) by Sabine Derflinger. New Kaisertal City is her directorial and scriptwriting debut.
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Two years ago, I read an article in the „New York Times“ about the 30 residents of the mountain valley “Kaisertal”, who live without a road to the outside world. My first trip to this idyllic valley which seems to be in another time and the conversation with the inhabitants about their extraordinary living circumstances brought me to write the concept of “New Kaisertal City”. The first draft had the aim to involve the inhabitants into the script writing and to work with them on their ideas about urban and rural stereotypes in an ironic-critical film. Unfortunately, this attempt failed because some of the residents were afraid of the debate and although a change of mind had happened through my long-lasting conversations they decided not to join the project. Because of my continuing interest in the extraordinary „Kaisertal“-story i worked on another conception where all the different cultures and nationalities who live in Tyrol should have a platform to communicate their thoughts. Again, I was engaged with contacting disadvantaged people in Tyrol for months. I spoke with immigrants, asylum-seekers, and got in contact with different integration-associations. Together with more than 40 people - most of them are also acting in the movie - the script was generated. For all the fear of contact between the „original“ Tyroleans and the Africans, Turks, Kurds and the Tibetans who live in exile reflected on utopian social models. The film shows the different thoughts in a fragmentary form. It should be seen as a political statement on the immigration-problem in „the holy land of Tyrol“ (as it is called throughout Austria). In the center of my work was the search of an adequate form of expression to show the complexity of the immigration problems according with insecurities, fears and hopes without beeing romantically prejudiced. Melanie Hollaus' biography: 1980, I was born in Tyrol. In 1999 I made my school leaving examination. The following four years I went to drama school. During that time I acted in different theatre- and filmproductions and did some jobs as assistant to the director. In 2002 I was the production assistant for an Austrian movie production called „Vollgas“ (director: Sabine Derflinger). In 2004 I moved to Vienna, where I am living until today. In 2005 I worked as a producer for the Viennese TV-station Puls TV (now: Puls 4). From 2005 till 2007 I realized four film-essays. In 2006 and 2007 I worked together with the Viennese KJDT-formation on a theater project based on all texts of the german poet Heiner Müller. In 2007 I did a photography-project with 15 year old girls in five Tyrolean villages, which are situated on a big cross that I drew on the map of Tyrol. I worked together with different associations and schools. In 2007 and 2008 I wrote, organized and realized the film „New Kaisertal City“ together with brennweit medienproduktion
