LSFF 2019: Behind the Wall: Ex Oriente Lux: 8mm Underground Experiments

After 38 years of existing as a divided country, the first crucial step towards German unification occurred on 9 November 1989 when Berlin opened its checkpoints and people passed freely between East and West for the first time in decades. We commemorate 30 years since this historic moment with three programmes of short films highlighting the dissenting and subversive work made in the German Democratic Republic. 

 

Founded by Dr Claus Löser and Karin Fritzsche, Ex Oriente Lux is a Berlin-based archive of 8mm experimental films made in the GDR between the years 1976–1991. Operating outside the ideological confines of the DEFA studio, these films showcase the versatility and creative energy of the artists and filmmakers experimenting on the fringes. Often screened in secret, they depict an East Germany as politically and culturally radical as their western counterparts, with bold explorations of gender, the avant-garde and urban decay. 73 minutes.

 

We are pleased to welcome Ex Oriente Lux founder Dr Claus Löser for an introductory talk.

 

Programme:

 

Lutz Dammbeck, Hommage a la Sarraz, 1981, 12 min

 

Cornelia Schleime, Unter Weißen Tüchern, 1983, 9 min

 

Claus Löser, Nekrolog, 1985, 6 min

 

Thomas Frydetzki, Engelchen, 1985, 9 min

 

Ramona Köppel-Walsh, Konrad! Sprach die Frau Mama, 1989, 11 min

 

Via Lewandowsky, Report, 1987, 7 min

 

Claus Löser, Die Gehirne, 1983, 4 min

 

Jana Milev and Via Lewandowsky, Doublage Fantastique, 1988, 15 min