Still Waters

Documentary: flood disaster in Ahr Valley, Germany

Ahr Valley, December 2021: The flood disaster was almost six months ago, and most of the houses have either been demolished or gutted. Markus, a winemaker from Walporzheim, is rebuilding his parents’ house thanks to the help of many helpers. Despite some setbacks, Markus is optimistic about the future. Horst, on the other hand, finds it difficult to come to terms with his experiences and sees humanity as having a responsibility due to the way it treats our planet. While the people in the Ahr Valley are struggling with the aftermath of the flood, car fans are driving their laps at the Nürburgring, which is not far away. In 2021, Germany experienced the biggest natural disaster in its recent history. In the Ahr Valley, west of Bonn, 134 people died when the Ahr and small tributaries of the Moselle burst their banks. The flood wave, which rolled through the Ahr Valley during the night of July 14-15 after extremely heavy rainfall, injured 766 people and damaged about 3,000 of the 4,200 buildings along the Ahr. 56,000 people live in the Ahr Valley, 42,000 were affected by the flood, and at least 17,000 directly lost belongings or suffered significant damage. Climate change has increased the likelihood and intensity of extreme rainfall in Western Europe. That’s the conclusion of a study that examined the role of climate change in the devastating July floods on the Ahr and Erft rivers in Germany and the Meuse in Belgium.In the previous flood disaster in the Ahr Valley from over 100 years ago, there were concrete plans for flood protection. However, these were discontinued in favor of the construction of the Nürburgring and have not been resumed to this day.

About the guests

KEVIN KOCH - Director
Born in Munich in 1995. Kevin first studied media sciences at the University of Bayreuth. During his studies, he founded a film production company with his brother and shot various documentaries, where he accompanied, among others, a teenage homeless person for two years. Since 2020, he has been studying directing at the Filmakademie Baden-Württemberg in Ludwigsburg.

FRANZISKA UNGER - Producer
Born in 1996 in Tübingen. After graduating from high school, she completed her Bachelor of Arts in 2018 in metropolitan culture at the HafenCity University Hamburg. Since the end of 2018, she has been working at the production company. Filmtank on primarily documentary material. In fall 2020, she began her studies in production at the Filmakademie Baden-Württemberg.

ANIAN KRONE - Cinematographer
Anian Krone, born in 1995, trained as a photo and media technical assistant in Stuttgart after finishing school. In order to get closer to the medium of film, he then completed an apprenticeship as a media designer for image and sound in Fürth. He then worked as a freelance camera assistant in advertising and film throughout Europe. Since 2020, he has been studying cinematography at the Filmakademie Baden-Württemberg.is forming his own visual language in many different projects.

EMMA HOLZAPFEL - Editor
Emma, born in 2000, discovered her passion for filmmaking in early childhood through acting. To gain more experience, she completed internships on film sets during high school and developed short ﬁlms within school. After graduating from high school in 2018, she worked as an assistant director on various international film productions. Since 2020, she has been studying editing at the Filmakademie Baden-Württemberg in Ludwigsburg. Besides her studies she works as a freelance editor and edits short films, commercials and documentaries.

Credits & Technical data:

Production: Filmakademie Baden-Württemberg GmbH
Length: 29 minutes
Format: 1,85:1, Color, Digital, Dolby 5.1, 2K DCP
Language in Film: German
Subtitles: English, German
Genre: Short Documentary
Country of Production: Germany
Director: Kevin Koch
Producer: Franziska Unger
Cinematographer: Anian Krone
Editor: Emma Holzapfel
Sound Designer: Timo Kleinemeier
Composer: Peter Albrecht
Protagonists: Markus Kelter, Horst Pfennig

Still Waters

About the guests

Credits & Technical data:

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