Between meetings and tasks I have been spending all my spare time with getting to know the pre alpine region not far away. Luckily I was carrying a camera with me and so I can provide you with some expressions from the trips:

On Friday we will go to Portugal. Starting from Lisbon we will drive all the way to Porto and be back in about one week. I am very happy my wife managed to plan the whole trip and I am really looking forward to one week without any computer near me. We also booked our big spontaneous trip to Tokyo, Japan in autumn. Three weeks of Tokyo. That is going to be “legendary”.

We start from the museum of art history.

We cross the highly frequented “Ring” (the inner of two circles surrounding the city center) and pass by the “Hofburg”

The Hofburg was and still is the residence of the Austrian leaders and I think the current president of the United States (Geroge W. Bush) will be welcomed there when he visits Austria this summer. The stand in front of the building is not always there. People could sit there and watch the runners of the Vienna Marathon which took place last Sunday.
Right after passing the Hofburg we end up at the “Michaelerplatz” where you have the chance to meet Mozart’s little Brother if you are lucky… I don’t have to mention that we were lucky:

Although his clothing may look quite antiquated he knows how to use a mobile. If you head straight forward you will most probably get to see some old form of transportation: the Viennese Gondoliere (like the Italian ones, just replace the Gondolas with Horses).

If you pass continue the street, passing by the traditional and famous K.u.K. Hofzuckerbäcker Demel you will then end up at the plague pillar

Then you really are in the center. Right around the corner at the end of the street you’ll find the “Stephansdom”. After shopping we went to get some more Mozart right behind the Hofburg:

It is no coincidence that you bump into some kind of Mozart artefact. Our most famous musician (next after Johann Hölzel) is celebrating his 250th birthday. Not only one single day but the whole year. Happy birthday Wolfgang. A toast to the genius of our “Woiferl”.

The festival was quite successful and very very interesting and entertaining for the audience. We are already looking forward to the next festival, taking place from 24th to 29th of April 2007.

Kontakt movie, imdb.com

The “European animation highlights” are a compilation of short films which gives a good overview of European animation works of the last year. The DVD should be available around June (hopefully, the initiators of the DVD said). The range of different styles was amazing. From light, entertaining trick films to really deep and heavy animations. I have to admit that one or two masterpieces were too abstract for my taste but it was good to see all the different types of contributions. One of my favourites was Fallen Arts which was an award winning computer animation. Just take a look at the incredible awards list. But the compilation also contained works of yet unknown students who delivered high quality animations too. The first work was “Maestro” which you can download here (44MB MPG). Sadly I did not find any other works online.

“On the outskirts” is a documentary film which deals with new communities which have evolved on the Turkish coastal areas. Large buildings where the Turkish people who worked hard in foreign countries (especially Germany) spend their retirement. The director itself explained to the audience that she wanted to focus on the problem the children of those workers face. They are forced to go “back” to a country which language they barely speak and to which they hardly have any connection anymore. It was very informative to listen to the directors stories. I am glad that I could see the film as it shows me a different Turkey than that I had in my mind.

The images of the festival officials are not published yet at the Crossing Europe gallery homepage. I am quite sure that I must be on one of the photos they took today Will check it out tomorrow…

This year I am going to see four movies and I am coming right back from the first of them: The Slovenian film “Odgrobadogroba” (Gravehopping)”. Starting as a really funny movie it focuses on a topic which is tabu in most countries, suicide, and gets quite tough and touching in some scenes. The plot focuses around the main actor, a man whose profession is to hold speeches at burials, his family and his neighbours. My favourite character was the father of the main role… the poor old man whose wife had died 6 years ago and who tries to escape his loneliness constantly. His expression is great and his person is just so likeable.

My favourite quote:

“Not everyone is born, but everyone is going to die.”

I am still very sorry that the audience (us included) did not ask any questions after the movie. I think we were just so moved by the film and would have needed some time to get ready for conversation. Sorry again about not being that talkative but thank you very much for this great movie.

Check back tomorrow for my comments on “European Animation Highlights” and “On the outskirts”.

Gravehopping movie homepage
Producer (left) and Director (right) of the film, talking to the audience

Crossing Europe film festival homepage