It's one of the most iconic horror films of all time – and we finally get to talk about it! Rosemary’s Baby is a masterpiece of psychological terror and paranoia, capturing the immense weight that comes with starting a family.

We also took on the complicated legacy of director Roman Polanski, reflecting on what it means to revisit classics that come with troubling histories. As you can judge from the length of the episode – not an easy task.

Timestamps:

01:44 Roman Polanski's Legacy

17:01 Production History, Conflicts Behind the Scenes

25:01 Rosemary's Baby Discussion

44:47 Recommendations

48:02 Family Game Teaser

It doesn’t happen nearly often enough – but finally, we had another African movie at Filmstelle! Idrissa Ouédraogos Tilaï offers an authentic African perspective on tradition, love and – of course – family. Drawing on the themes of Greek tragedy, the film transcends both cultural and geographical boundaries.

Enjoy the Episode!

Timestamps

02:05 Start Discussion

26:15 Recommendations

30:15 Teaser Rosemary's Baby

In her feature film debut Deniz Gamze Ergüven tells the story of five sisters coming of age in a world determined to contain them. Their fight for freedom is fierce, heartbreaking, and deeply moving, making Mustang one of the most powerful films in our program.

There was plenty to unpack, and thankfully, we weren’t alone—Kim joins us once again to lend her insights to the conversation.

Enjoy the Episode!

Start Discussion – 01:10

Film Recommendations – 33:37

Teaser "Tilaï" – 39:04

In this episode we get to celebrate a true gem of Brazilian cinema: Lavoura Arcaica is poetic storytelling at its finest. Director Luiz Fernando Carvalho finds images and sounds that linger long after the credits roll. We might even go so far as to call it the most visually stunning film in our entire program.

Its thematic ambiguity makes it a challenging film to discuss, but we gave it our best shot. Thankfully, we're once again joined by Mischa, our first-ever returning guest!

Enjoy the Episode!

Timestamps:

Start Discussion – 00:02:19

Film Recommendations – 00:33:35

Teaser "Mustang" – 00:41:31

In this episode, we delve into Leo McCarey’s timeless tearjerker, the endlessly wonderful Make Way for Tomorrow. A masterpiece of classical Hollywood, McCarey himself considered it his finest work–and we at Filmstelle couldn’t agree more.

Joining us for the discussion is our very own living, breathing film encyclopedia and all-around lovely human being: Mischa! Tune in as we explore what it truly means to “Honor thy father and thy mother.”

Enjoy the episode!

Timestamps:

01:13 – Start Discussion

44:23 – Film Recommendations

48:18 – Teaser: Lavoura Arcaica

Today we discuss a film that startet an entire movement: Thomas Vinterberg's masterpiece "Festen". As the first "Dogma" film, it introduced the world to an entirely new way of making movies. And of course, with a new Film comes a new guest: our progi-head Kim joins us in today's episode to discuss the Danish classic.

Enjoy the Episode!

Timestamps:

05:12 – Start Discussion

46:45 – Film Recommendations

56:57 – Teaser: Make Way for Tomorrow

In this episode, we discuss one of Satoshi Kon's many masterpieces: Tokyo Godfathers. How does it fit into his filmography, and most importantly, what does it say about family? Joining us for the conversation is our first-ever guest from the Filmstelle family: Michael!

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This Semester at the Filmstelle its all about the concept of Family. Tune in as Jérôme and Chris discuss the new program: FAMILY BUSINESS.

What is our process for selecting the films, which films did we select and what does Family even mean? These questions and more will be answered in this first ever episode of the Podcaststelle.