The Film and Media Foundation NRW Awards Over 220,000 Euros for Ten Graduation Film Projects

At its 26th graduation film meeting, the Film and Media Foundation NRW awarded grants to ten new graduation films by students from the Cologne University of Applied Arts (KHM) and the Dortmund University of Applied Sciences (FH Dortmund). The selected projects tell compelling stories of self-discovery, heritage, illness, loss, solidarity, and love, demonstrating in a unique way the sensitivity and cinematic power with which the next generation of filmmakers in NRW addresses the social issues of our time.

A new member of the graduation film jury is filmmaker Katharina Huber from Cologne.

Feature Film

KADUPULBLÜTEN (working title) – 25,000 euros
Director: Richard Andreas Finger
University: KHM

When the severely depressed Adelheid (57) confesses to the priest Alfons (56) that she wants to die, he brushes her off—the beginning of a tender love story.

ANFAL – EIGHT LIVES, ONE GENOCIDE (AT) (Documentary) – 20,000 euros
Director: Hesamaddin Yousefi
University: KHM

In the mountainous region of South Kurdistan (Northern Iraq), amid green hills, destroyed villages, and depopulated valleys, eight voices rise up against the silence. In this documentary, eight survivors from different parts of South Kurdistan recount the eight phases of Operation Anfal—a systematic military campaign of extermination carried out by the Iraqi Ba’ath regime against the Kurdish population in 1988. “Anfal—Eight Lives, One Genocide (working title)” creates a space for collective memories that transcend the Kurdish context to speak in a universal language of survival, trauma, and dignity.

Medium-length film

ANCONA TO PATRAS (working title) – 30,000 euros
Director: Maximilian Karakatsanis
University: KHM

A German truck driver develops a close friendship with a Greek employee of a car ferry during his trips to Greece. When she asks him to drive her to her remote mountain village in the Peloponnese to say goodbye to her sick mother, he agrees, even though his job leaves no room for detours.

51 QM (Documentary) – 10,922 euros
Directed by: Michael Aldick and Kübra Kenger
University: Dortmund University of Applied Sciences

The documentary “51 qm” offers a poignant glimpse into life with Long Covid and ME/CFS. Once active in social work and involved in filmmaking, she is now confined to 51 square meters of living space. The film depicts the physical and emotional challenges of these invisible illnesses, including extreme exhaustion, sensitivity to stimuli, and isolation. Animated dream sequences contrast with the gravity of everyday life and open up a space for hope. “51 qm” addresses not only the personal struggle but also the systematic neglect of those affected by politics and society.

Short Film

I CAN NOT SAVE YOU, I CAN NOT SAVE ANYONE – 28,000 euros
Director: Jiraporn Saelee
University: KHM

While Mi is driving to pick up her brother Meng from the rehabilitation center, she is overcome by childhood memories. She wonders why Meng became addicted, as pain, violence, and tragic memories come to the surface.

KAIROS – 28,000 euros
Director: Sandra Riedmair
University: KHM

In a run-down resort hotel on the Red Sea, 27-year-old Anna waits for her father, whom she hasn’t seen in over twenty years. While the corals are dying outside and the staff inside hope for tourists, Anna grapples with her longing for recognition—and discovers that some things never return.

ON DRY LAND – 20,000 euros
Director: Flavia-Ioana Lacrama
University: Dortmund University of Applied Sciences

Johanna (24) was born in Romania and moved to Germany with her mother as a child, where she grew up. Her relationship with her mother has deteriorated over the years. She now lives in a big city, where she is studying. Johanna doesn’t identify with Romanian culture and feels like she doesn’t belong anywhere. When she goes home to visit her mother during winter break, fish scales begin to grow on her skin. The more she tries to hide her scales, the more they grow, and her relationship with her mother becomes increasingly strained. It is only when Johanna discovers that her mother has the same fish scales as she does that she learns to accept her own scales.

BAD APPLES – 20,000 euros
Director: Jan Hamshoro
University: Dortmund University of Applied Sciences

In the middle of the Syrian desert, a deserting soldier knocks on the door of a married couple living near a military base. Torn between fear and compassion, they face the decision of whether to help him—or betray him to protect their own lives.

LOESS – 20,000 euros
Director: Mengting Xing
University: KHM

In a village on the Loess Plateau in northwestern China that is in danger of disappearing, a woman named Xiaoxia remains behind with her goats. As she preserves the abandoned houses and rituals, she uses her body to forge new paths between the past and the future.

SILVESTER – 20,000 euros
Director: Tatiana Vyshegordtseva
University: KHM

On New Year’s Eve, Grisha, a Russian emigrant living in Berlin, is alone. Suddenly, his old friends show up at the door, and the evening turns into a nostalgic celebration. But a betrayal from the past, committed by one of those present, shatters the illusion of togetherness.