A riveting animated tale of the fall of the Berlin Wall – and people brave enough to change the world – told through the eyes of a courageous 12-year-old girl.
Screened as part of NZIFF 2020
Fritzi: A Revolutionary Tale 2019
Fritzi: Eine Wendewundergeschichte
East Germany, 1989. Summertime. While her best friend Sophie visits Hungary, 12-year-old Fritzi dog-sits her little pup, Sputnik. When Fritzi discovers public protests stirring around her, she realises that Sophie may have left for more than a summer break, so she and Sputnik set out to find her. Historically accurate and authentic, and loaded with rich period detail and atmosphere, Fritzi: A Revolutionary Tale shares a powerful all-ages story of peaceful revolution and social uprising. — Nic Marshall
“[Fritzi] does a great job of showing what happened in 1989 in the former communist countries. And it also does a great job of giving kids a lesson to be remembered: how a non-violent protest can cause substantial, long-lasting social and political change – and how the voice of the many can disrupt the power of the few… The parallel with the migrants and refugees of the present day is difficult to miss, no matter the age of the viewer. Fritzi… [reminds] us that everyone, at a certain point in history, was a fugitive, a person searching for a better place to live and raise a family. And this turns Fritzi not only into a history lesson, but also into a lesson in compassion.” — Stefan Dobroiu, Cineuropa
About the Filmmaker
Ralf Kukula and Matthias Bruhn are German animators and directors. Kukula is the co-founder of the German Institute for Animated Film; Bruhn is the chief executive of animation studio Trick Studio Lutterbeck. Fritzi: A Revolutionary Tale is their first collaboration as filmmakers.