* Bild des Tages *
The Picture of the Day
Diese Foto ging rund um die Welt, nach dem Brandanschlag in Tröglitz © picture alliance / dpa / Jan Woitas 2015
Deutschland - Kanada / 91' / Full HD / 5.1 Dolby / deu
Trailer: vimeo.com/220623955
PRESSEMAPPE / PRESSKIT: www.velinraconte.com/the-picture-of-the-day-bild-des-tages-pressemappe-presskit.htm
What this
German - Canadian FILM
is all about, is in English (below),
to give some context for
people not living in Germany.
Most people in Germany
vividly recall the incident
that inspired the film.
After an arson attack in a German village,
Easter 2015,
on an apartment block
that was to house 40 asylum-seekers,
national and international media attention
blanketed the village.
Thus, this burnt-out roof became
the icon of a new wave
of xenophobic,
racist violence in the country,
in the year a million people
seeking asylum or simple refuge
made it to Germany.
The arsonists were never identified.
It's not known if they came from the village,
but the name of the place
was stigmatised:
Troeglitz.
This affected the people who
live there, profoundly.
And that is where the film begins.
The Picture of the Day / Bild des Tages
grows from long observation
within the so-called Stille Mitte, or
Schweigende Mitte - this translates
as the silent majority -
in Troeglitz
and in the neighbouring communities
that make up the Elsteraue municipality,
and on the fringes of the town of Zeitz.
All together they make the "Zeitz" electoral district.
The most intense part of the recording took place
in the eleven months between the attack
and the state election in Saxony-Anhalt,
March 13, 2016.
The last shoot was in September 2016.
The result of the election was a blow,
but not a big surprise by then, to those
who believe the best kind of German
society is inclusive, robustly tolerant
and giving.
DIRECTOR'S STATEMENT:
The Picture of the Day / Bild des Tages
continues my exploration of emotional geographies
that I began with One Fine Line (2013)
and that was shot about 100 kilometers away
from Troeglitz.
I have been very concerned as a journalist
and in my documentary work,
that the unheard and unseen strata of society
be included in the public discourse.
No one wanted to talk to journalists much soon after the arson attack.
The majority wanted the press to go away. They did not recognise themselves and the
community anymore in what was reported.
"We're not like that!" I heard many times.
Each adult in the film has a vote,
like any other citizen in the region.
This is the overlooked, but politically weighty,
middle ground.
Their presence, personalities, and the voices
of the children,
feel diverse,
surprising, touching.
I have not included politicians,
or others who easily walk up to
a TV camera and speak their
minds; they have their platforms.
Many people in the film needed time.
Clichés are subverted.
Storyline is like a river
curling around the rocks.
The cinematography
reaches into our collective,
mediated memory
of people
seeking asylum in Europe.
But the dominant focus is
on people living in and around this iconic site.
The Stille Mitte is
not so 'still',
or silent,
or necessarily in the middle,
after all.
Without the generosity of so many local residents
who tolerated my attention and perseverance,
including many who do not appear,
this film would not have
the soul it has now.
The Picture of the Day / Bild des Tages
is grounded in deep, factual research but influenced
by what felt normal growing up in Canada:
that race, ethnic origin
and religion are completely independent from your right to
citizenship and therefore your right to vote.
Eike Goreczka, in Halle (Saale)
in the state of Saxony Anhalt,
has been co-producing The Picture of the Day
on behalf of 42film with me since mid-2015.
My bureau, velinraconte film, is in Berlin,
with partner Sunset Pictures in Canada.
Mitteldeutsche Medienförderung contributed
seed money ("Material Sicherung") and is supporting tour logistics costs.
The photograph above, of the Troeglitz roof © picture alliance / dpa / Jan Woitas 2015
The photograph below, of the house interior © Jo-Anne Velin 2015
