Section: POLSKIE HORYZONTY: The Female Gaze

Rückkehr in die windige Stadt

Return to the windy city

Kristina Forbat
Germany, 2013, 52 Min

Kristina Forbat returns to Košice in eastern Slovakia, her place of birth, as journalist and town chronicler. Assisted by discussions with locals and new insight into her family history, she undertakes a highly intimate search for clues in this border town and four-country point between Slovakia, Poland, Hungary and the Ukraine.

Savid

“Our family has resided in five countries: firstly we were in Hungary, then Czechoslovakia for a short period of time, before becoming Hungarians again. Eventually, and all of a sudden, we were all equal and now we're all free.” These words, from the director's grandmother, provide an apt description of the tumultuous history of Košice. In 2013, Kristina Forbat returned to the city, prompted by curiosity about her family history, which in turn has the potential to shed light both on the cultural melting pot of Košice (or Kaschau as it was once known in German), as well as the intricate net of family destinies in a region where Slovaks, Hungarians, Germans and the city's sizeable Jewish community peacefully cohabited for generations. In fact right up until the previous century, with its wars and political turmoil that meant catastrophe for many. Kristina Forbat's film shows however, that there also remain grounds for hope. JG

Filmformat
DCP | Farbe / colour
Drehbuch
Kristina Forbat
Kamera
Ernest Groh
Ton
Jaroslav Hajda, Daniel Pastucha
Schnitt
Peter Hrabinsky
Musik
Norbert Bodnar
Produzent
Ernest Groh
Produktion
Savid
Kontakt
Savid
Rázusova 28
040 01 Košice
Slovakia
Tel.: +421.55.622.09 82
savid@savid.sk
www.savid.sk
Kristina Forbat

Kristina Forbat - born 1986 in Košice, ČSSR. Shortly before the “Velvet Revolution” her family emigrated to Germany. She studied political science, communication science and journalism in Münster, Germany, and Lille, France. She has since worked for various film production companies and today works as an independent author and researcher.