The Path Is Never the Same

| Opening Ceremony Kassel Dokfest
(Gloria)

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| Rerun of the Opening Short Film Compilation
(kleines BALi, KulturBahnhof Kassel)

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This film focuses on two complex, self-organizing systems: a forest and an occupation. Long shots show the Hambacher Forest near Cologne, one of Germany’s last old-growth forests. The forest has become the scene of Europe’s longest tree-top occupation. Since 2012, about 200 people have been living in this forest to prevent its clearing by the energy company RWE, which wants to extract the lignite beneath the forest floor. In January 2020, after much of Hambacher Forest was already destroyed, pressure maintained for years by climate activists forced German politicians to order the preservation of what remained. The film reflects on the forest as a living space and on the need to confront the climate vandalism perpetrated in the name of “economic activity”.

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  • Duration: 27 Min.
  • Countries: Austria
  • Languages: German
  • Subtitles: English
  • Production year: 2022
  • Premiere: World Premiere

  • Director: Oliver Ressler
  • Camera: Oliver Ressler
  • Editing: Janina Herhoffer, Lisbeth Kovačič, Oliver Ressler
  • Sound: Vinzenz Schwab, Vinzenz Schwab
  • Production: Oliver Ressler