Wanja

Synopsis

The former bank robber Wanja (Anne Ratte-Polle) is released from a long prison sentence. As her feelings of loneliness escalate, Wanja sets out to find work and hereby a new identity. Against all odds she lands an internship at a horse race track. In the stable she gets to know the troubled teenager Emma (Nele Trebs), and a strong friendship develops between the two women. When Emma slips deeper into her own drug abuse, Wanja decides to rescue her.

 

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WANJA (2015) is available on DVD

 

WANJA marks the feature debut of its director Carolina Hellsgård, who seems keen on maintaining a certain non-judgemental distance between audience and leading character, that allows her to be all the more real, in an unflinching portrait of a woman that is far from perfect. www.cinecola.com

The heartbeat of this film is Hellsgård’s script; with its simple and sparse dialogue, it is able to show and never tell. The creation of Wanja is excellent, a blend of strength and uncertainty. (...) The use of Wanja’s relationship with animals is exceptionally crafted and expresses her as a character far better than pages of dialogue ever could. This is a great film, with a protagonist not yet ready to give in, a masterly shot urban landscape and an eye on keeping the viewer engaged throughout. http://www.takeonecff.com/

Main cast

Anne Ratte-Polle (Wanja)
Nele Trebs (Emma)
Viktor Minich (Rudi)
Marko Dyrlich (Ulf)
Michael Baderschneider (Otto)
Mehmet Yilmaz (Nicolas)
Jan Bülow (Kevin)
Tim Blochwitz (Robbe)
Hauke Petersen (Dennis)
Joachim Schönfeld (social worker)
Florian Anderer (social worker, job center)
Rike Eckermann (social worker, job center)
Cornelius Schwalm (robber)
Laura Kiehne (nurse)
Stefan Dietrich (drug user)
Katharina Blaschke (group leader)
Karin Tomzik (veterinary)

Crew

Writer/Director: Carolina Hellsgård
DP: Kathrin Krottenthaler
AC: Vlad Margulis
Production sound: Robert Fuhrmann
Production manager: Andrea Giesel, Johanna Aust
Production supervisor: Sandra Gürtler
Unit production manager: Cristian Obst, Peggy Rieckmann, Katja Berls, Paul Scharf
Assistant director: Anna Kremser
Set photographer: Aline Reinsbach
Gaffer: Sebastian Fuhrmann
Lighting technichians: Benedict Aufzug, Leon Kuklinski, Tillmann Both
2nd AC/DIT: Leonhard Kairat, Leonard Schmidt
Editor: Carolina Hellsgård, Antonella Sarubbi
Scenography: Nadin Meister, Lea Walloschke
Props: Heather Purcell
Costume design: Elena Neuthinger, Lena Nienaber
Make-up: Jessica Krause
Child supervision: Uta Hörmeyer
Animal trainer: Thomas Wamser, Katja Elsässer
Costume design assistant / Fundus: Anne Makarov, Christian Röhrs
Casting: Christiane Lilge, Carolina Hellsgård
Sound design: Christian Obermaier
Dialogues & Sound mix: Jochen Jezussek
Foley: Martin Langenbach
Mastering: Chaussee Filmton
Music: Steffen W. Scholz
Image Postproduction: Chroma Media GMBH & CO KG, Deli Pictures GMBH
Postproducer: Christoph Stingel
Color correction: Oliver Schumacher
VFX-Artist: Patrick Firmansyah
Title Design & Graphic: Kathrin Krottenthaler
Extras: Mecon Media Concept Ltd.
Editing advisor: Astrid Rieger, Szilvia Ruszev
Dramaturgical advisor: Gabriele Brunnenmeyer, Agnes Schruf
Location scouting: Andrea Giesel, Iris Czáck, Sandra Gürtler
Research: Jutta Geray, Ulla Loge
Project advisor: Katja Morgeneier, Irene von Alberti

Produced by FLICKFILM GbR Producer: Johanna Aust Co-Producer: Kim Neumann, Jürgen Schaum, Sebastian Wolters / STORYTELLERS GmbH & CO KG

Technical info: RED 4K, 90 minutes Film technic from Chroma Media GMBH & CO KG, Media TV GMBH, Dino Wunderlich Videoequipment Verleih, Cine Service Mausolf, 25p *Cine Support, Kortwich Filmtontechnik

Project development supported by Kuratorium junger deutscher Film Production funding from BKM, Kuratorium junger deutscher Film Production and distribution funding from the nordmedia – Film- und Mediengesellschaft Niedersachsen/Bremen mbH

 

Festivals & Screenings

Goethe-Institute Toronto 6th of October, 2016
Goethe Institute Stockholm 21st of April, 2016
Gothenburg Film Festival, Sweden 29 Jan - 8 Feb, 2016
Internationales Filmwochenende Würzburg 28-31 January, 2016
Filmmoor Women’s Film Festival on Wheels, Istanbul 12 - 20 March, 2016
Tbilisi International Film Festival, Georgia 30th of November – 6th of December

South American Premiere:
São Paulo International Film Festival, Brazil October 22nd to November 4th, 2015
New Filmmakers Competition

US Premiere:
Austin Film Festival,
US Screenings: Saturday, October 31 • 12:30pm - 1:30pm,
Wednesday, November 4 • 9:45pm - 11:45pm
Biberacher Filmfestspiele, Germany, Best first feature competition 4 – 8th of November
Cork Film Fest, Ireland, 6 – 15th of November

UK Premiere:
Goethe-Institute London
Tuesday, 8 September 2015, 19:00 h
In collaboration with the 35th Cambridge Film Festival.
Cambridge Film Festival, UK
Contemporary German Cinema
Wednesday, 9 September 2015, 22:00 h

North American Premiere:
Montreal World Film Festival, Canada
Focus on World Cinema
Friday September 4, 2015 - 11:30 AM - CINÉMA QUARTIER LATIN 15
Saturday September 5, 2015 - 08:40 PM - CINÉMA QUARTIER LATIN 15

Asian Premiere:
Women Make Waves Film Festival, Taipei, Taiwan 9-18th of October 2015

INTERNATIONAL PREMIERE:
Official Competition at the Valletta Film Festival, Malta 15-21 June 2015
Official Competition at the Valencia International Film Festival Cinema Jove, Spain 19-26 June 2015

WORLD PREMIERE:
WANJA premieres at the Berlinale – Perspektive Deutsches Kino
nominated for Berlinale Best First Feature Award! 7-15 Februar 2015

 

Pressmaterial:

WANJA Presskit (English)
WANJA Presskit (German Online Version)
WANJA Presskit (German Print Version)
WANJA Plakat
WANJA Stills

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German Press

"Am unteren Ende" SWR2 von Julia Haungs
Bayern 2 FilmFavorit
"Wanja" - eine Frau wagt einen Neuanfang" NDR Kultur von Katja Nicodemus
"Wanja braucht den Kick" in der taz. die tageszeitung Anne Ratte-Polle im Interview mit Jenni Zylka
"Fremd in der eigenen Haut" im Tagesspiegel von Christiane Peitz
"Unter bissigen Stuten" auf SPIEGEL ONLINE von Carolin Weidner
"Einfach da. Anne Ratte-Polle ist in "Wanja" eine Entdeckung" im BR - Bayerischer Rundfunk von Moritz Holfelder
Wanja, radioeins by Knut Elstermann Anne Ratte-Polle bei Volle Kanne im ZDF
"Ich hatte Lust auf eine geheimnisvolle Frau" auf Deutschlandradio Kultur C. Hellsgård im Interview mit Susanne Burg
"Wanja" im kulturradio vom rbb von Carsten Beyer
"Wanja" auf radioeins von Anke Leweke
Kritik zu Wanja in der epd Film von Alexandra Seitz
Berlinale Interview with Carolina Hellsgård about WANJA - by Helene Hegemann (in German)