Auteur filmmaker Lazlo Kovac is denied funding for his film project. Too old, heart problems and no longer employable. Didn’t the Hungarian from Lake Balaton want to reach the top? What now? Continue to be dependent on his successful wife? Lazlo slides into a virtual life crisis and finds comfort in a “fantastic woman” from the neighboring village.

When a right-wing politician runs for the mayoral elections as the only candidate, Lazlo seems to come to his senses: In order to prevent the “right-wing bozo” from ruling over his village of 120 souls, he hastily allows himself to be nominated as a liberal counter-candidate. ÜBERLEBEN IN BRANDENBURG is a comedy about ageism and post-midlife crisis with a red-hot connection to the current political situation.

Cast

Laszlo Kovacz: Zoltan Paul

Emma Meisel: Adele Neuhauser

Lisa: Sabine Weibel

Tilo Weidland: Joachim Assböck

Fritz Meisel: Dietrich Hollinderbäumer

Clemens: Ralph Herforth

Mario: Werner Eng

Karcsi: Laszlo I Kish

Andrzej: André Fischer

Überleben in Brandenburg - Poster 2 — Surviving Brandenburg

Ben von Grafenstein, Zoltan Paul

Fiction

Production Country / Year: Germany 2023

Language: de., hu. OF mit en. UT

Format: DCP, Color, 82min
2.39:1, Discrete 5.1

Original Title: Überleben in Brandenburg

Director & Crew

Ben von Grafenstein 1 — Ben von Grafenstein

Born in 1975 in Würzburg. Worked as a film editor. Studied Scenic Directing at the Filmakademie Baden-Württemberg. Active as a writer and director.

Filmography

2007-2006 BLINDFLUG, Spielfilm

2011 KASIMIR UND KAROLINE, Spielfilm

2013 HELMUT SCHMIDT – LEBENSFRAGEN, Spielfilm

2014/15 DIE KLASSE - BERLIN 61, Spielfilm

2019 DIE UNGEWOLLTEN - DIE IRRFAHRT DER ST. LOUIS, Spielfilm

2022 LETZTER VORHANG, Kurzfilm

2023 ÜBERLEBEN IN BRANDENBURG (Co-Regie), Spielfilm HOF 2023

Zoltan Paul 1 — Zoltan Paul

Born in 1953 in Budapest/Hungary, died in 2022 in Brandenburg. Studied Acting in Vienna and worked for theater and television.

Filmography

2001 GONE, Kurzfilm

2004 GONE – EINE TÖDLICHE LEIDENSCHAFT, Spielfilm

2008 UNTER STROM, Spielfilm

2012 FRAUENSEE, Spielfilm HOF 2012

2014 AMOK – HANSI GEHT´S GUT, Spielfilm HOF 2014

2017 BREAKDOWN IN TOKYO, Spielfilm HOF 2017

2023 ÜBERLEBEN IN BRANDENBURG (Co-Regie), Spielfilm HOF 2023

“A few years ago, Zoltan asked me if I would cooperate with him on a Brandenburg film. Since he was going to play the main character, he wanted me to co-direct. We sketched first scenes, but I had to cancel. Then Zoltan died unexpectedly. Everyone was shocked. The wacky, but unfinished film was in limbo. After a long struggle, I decided to take over the baton, i.e., the direction. With the trust of the producers, Tina and Jan, and with my friends Nina and Sandra, I wrote the text, re-shot the film, edited it and brought it back to life. It’s a film about life and survival, just the way Zoltan was: a fun-loving, quirky bon vivant, a loyal friend.”

Ben von Grafenstein

Writer: Zoltan Paul
Director of Photography: Jan Kerhart
Editor: Ben von Grafenstein
Production Designer: Claus Rudolf Amler
Costume Designer: Ingrid Buhrmann
Sound: André Goeters
Sound Designer: Michael Schmidt
Music Composer: Julian Adam Pajzs
Make-up: Sherin Kohler
Producer: Clementina Hegewisch; Jan Kerhart