Current Projects

Isaac Newton – The Last Alchemist

London 1936. A suitcase full of documents is auctioned off at Sothebys. It once belonged to Sir Isaac Newton, one of the founders of modern science. Its contents had thus far never been revealed to the public. The buyer is full of expectation, will the documents show new insights into the creative genius of Sir Isaac Newton? He was one of the giants of science, he had developed a new system of mathematics, he had explained the nature of light and he had discovered the universal laws of gravitation. The world is shocked when it learns from the scholar who had examined the documents. His verdict: The documents are full of esoteric information, Newton was not the first representative of the enlightenment but the last of the alchemists. The film explores the consequences for the image of Newton in the history of science based on the still ongoing investigation of his secret manuscripts.

43/53 Min.

The Last Days of the Maharajas

India, in the mid-nineteenth century. The East India Company, after 250 years of monopoly in the East India trade, is in control of 50 percent of world trade and a quarter of the world’s population. Yet the Maharajas still rule over the largest part of the Indian subcontinent. But they increasingly come under pressure from the British. A revolt among the Indian soldiers in the British army sparks off the first Indian war of independence in 1857. Some of the maharajas remain loyal to the British, others decide to side with the insurgents and even lead the revolt. The film “The Last Days of the Maharaja” deals with one of the most dramatic episodes in Indian history.

43/53 Min.

Landed Gentry in Europe – a dying species?

Full of traditions, yet often empoverished, owners of stately homes but their corduroys trousers mended. What is the reality behind the clichés about the landed gentry? Our films portray several people who have chosen to deal with their traditions in various different ways. Why is it so important to save the family house? And how can one survive in a time in which living in a stately home or castle seems entirely anachronistic and in which cultivating the land seems no longer profitable? Our protagonists offer some surprising solutions to their inherited dilemmas.

2x43 Min.

Ketchup in Tuva

A documentary about an expedition into the Asian interior, searching for Scythian gold.

70 Min.

The Jig

A portrait of the German sculptor Luise Kimme, living in Tobago.

53 Min.