Content from MDR

Russian President Vladimir Putin was one of the first politicians to congratulate Donald Trump on his election as president of the United States in 2016, but over time the relationship between the two heads of state has had its ups and downs. Are they friends or enemies? Has their mutual admiration turned into mutual distrust?

It's 1989 in East Berlin: Suzie is kicked out of school shortly before she graduates from high school and has to defend herself as a worker in the cable factory. However, a randomly taken photo leads her to the fashion world of the GDR. The editor-in-chief Elsa Wilbrodt put her on the cover of Sibylle, the fashion magazine of the GDR. In the Berlin underground scene she made the acquaintance of the gay fashion designer Rudi and the photographer Coyote. Suzie must decide if she's brave enough to leave the old strands behind forever.

Andreas Dresen is one of the most successful German directors. The documentary accompanies him through the year 2023 until the opening evening at the Filmmuseum Potsdam, which is honoring him and his team with an exhibition and film series. The portrait looks at his career, his artistic work and social commitment. Numerous companions have their say.

From 1945 to 1989, after the capitulation of Nazi Germany, two rival ideologies, communism and capitalism, faced each other in a merciless battle. On one side of the Iron Curtain and on the other, throughout the Cold War, the USSR and the United States sought to shape children’s imaginations through their magazines and films. Never in the history of mankind have so many comic books been published and so many cartoons produced for young people. In November 1989, communism collapsed with the Berlin Wall; capitalism was left to decide the future of the world. What if this victory had been prepared for a long time, and our thinking conditioned, from our early childhood, to ensure this absolute triumph?

A critical and objective look back at Ukraine's tumultuous and tragic history, from its mythical founding in the 10th century to the Russian invasion in 2022.

Radical West German terrorist Rita Vogt abandons the revolution and settles in East Germany with a new identity provided by the secret service. She lives in constant fear of having her cover blown, which unavoidably happens after the reunification.

Is 2012 threatening the end of the world? Are unforeseen disasters coming? Do ancient prophecies come true? Are the earthquakes, hurricanes, financial crises, uprisings and wars of our day the heralds of the end?

Year 1763, the Seven Years' War is about to end. August III, Elector of Saxony and King of Poland, has died, leaving empty the royal treasury and an extraordinary collection of paintings, sculptures, jewelry and goldsmith masterpieces, which he considered a symbol of his greatness, and that of Dresden, one of the European capitals of Baroque art.

Eleven-year-old Linh shows great grace under pressure. When her mother, who’s raising her kids on her own, has to return unexpectedly to Vietnam, Linh looks after her little sister Tien and the family restaurant on her own. Of course, no one is supposed to find out, not the school, not the neighbours, and definitely not child protective services. But Linh’s biggest problem has red hair, a telescope and a sly grin: Pauline. The daredevil from across the street has the whole neighbourhood under surveillance and can’t imagine anything cooler than a life without parents. When Pauline blackmails the Vietnamese sisters into starting a gang with her, the three girls set off on a daring adventure.

Martin Greenfield learned to sew while mending shirts for the Gestapo in Auschwitz and went on to make suits for U.S. presidents and stars. Now, at 95, America’s greatest tailor is grappling with his legacy.

When Katja, Henning's girlfriend, is sentenced to prison, he kidnaps the judge to free Katja.

In 1989, thirteen GDR scientists and technicians set off from East Berlin to the Georg Forster research station in the Antarctic. During their expedition the Berlin Wall fell on November 9th. Cut off from the images that go around the world, the men can only experience the historical events passively. When they returned in the spring of 1991, their homeland was a foreign country. The documentary reconstructs the thoughts and feelings of the East German researchers on the basis of eyewitness accounts, diary excerpts, letters, film material, grandiose landscape shots from the location of the action and unique photos to make the consequences of the events tens of thousands of kilometers away on the small GDR expedition in the middle of the eternal ice tangible.

From 1938-1939, the systematic anti-Semitism of Adolph Hitler and the Nazis led to violence and despotism towards Jewish citizens, along with the exploitation of Jewish property. Tax inspectors, bailiffs, pawnbrokers, and auctioneers were among the major profiteers of the Holocaust. This documentary goes on a hunt for relics of the past and those who've profited most from the injustices of WWII.

Young Piano teacher Lukas accidentally meets DJ Nathalie, the love of his life. After losing her telephone number, he starts looking for her. Finally, he finds her place and stays with friends of hers while she is abroad. Now Lukas falls in love with Alice, but does not want to admit it. And while his relationship with Alice is in doubt, Nathalie comes back home. Trouble had been breeding all along.

In September 2015, the world of science experienced a sensation: researchers in the USA succeeded in proving the existence of gravitational waves for the first time in the history of physics. A milestone. This proof opens up a completely new perspective on our universe - perhaps even on the birth of the cosmos itself, nothing less than the Big Bang. Gravitational waves are created when something gigantic happens in the universe: a stellar explosion, the merging of neutron stars or black holes.

The AfD, founded in 2013, is a right-wing party that has become increasingly radicalized in recent years. To illustrate this, only those who enthusiastically joined the party in its early years are heard. They describe what they looked for and found in the party, but also how and why they left, disillusioned and frightened by the AfD's developments. How did they experience the party's radicalization process? How did friends and family react? When and why did they decide to turn their back on the party? How difficult was the exit process? The documentary provides an illuminating inside view of this party, which has been driving the established parties and the political establishment ahead of it for over ten years, gives viewers a unique look into the AfD's chronicle and world of thought and is at the same time a film about the mechanisms of political radicalization.

We get to know a few inhabitants of central European rivers.

Over the course of a fifty-year career, the British band The Cure has released fourteen highly successful studio albums; but it was their 1989 album Disintegration, released during a pivotal year for Europe and the world, that would capture the imagination of so many fans.

The film shows the apparently intact world of a middle class family, whose harmonious façade crumbles due to the unexpected visit of their relative Paul, a young man of 16 years. Paul arrives looking for love and support after the suicide of his father.

A 9th century woman of English extraction born in the German city of Ingelheim disguises herself as a man and rises through the Vatican ranks.

Sister Hanna is a spirited, witty, resolute, warm-hearted, and - attractive nun. With her wit and street cred, she takes charge of Kaltenthal Cloister, transforming it into a popular refuge for all those seeking help of one kind or another. She also brings new life to the sleepy provincial community, proving herself quite a match for her great rival and opponent, the mayor Wolfgang Wöller.

Examining different species of animals as they grow to adulthood and learn life lessons that are sometimes difficult.

A young girl falls in love with a poor brewer's son. Their relationship is opposed by the girl's father, a rich mobster who has come to town to try to bully his way into the inner circle of Munich's brewery dynasties.

The story of Franz Kafka's life from different perspectives. Presenting his difficult relationship with his domineering father Hermann, his deep friendship with Max Brod and his various love affairs.

A seemingly sheltered family living behind the Berlin Wall in East Germany begins to crumble, in a climate of fear, mistrust, and shocking secrets.9

Eight-years old Kuba is on the trail of a magic stone, which pieces float somewhere in the world. If he puts the pieces together, the magic stone will bring happiness and prosperity to everyone. In search of the magic bits, Kuba and his brother travel through time and space visiting an ancient Gaul pre-Slavic Biskupin.

Hardly any piece of clothing embodies freedom, pragmatism and individuality as much as the Bluejeans. It is considered a symbol of the "American Dream" and is carried from arm to rich by almost every person. Despite their popularity, very few know the history of their invention. Around 1850, the German-Jewish peddler son Levi Strauss emigrated to America with his sister due to lack of prospects and anti-Semitism in the old Franconian homeland. His brothers are already doing a dry goods store there. When the big gold rush breaks out, Levi continues to San Fransicso, where he opens a textile goods business under his own name. The demand from the gold-diggers for hard-wearing pants is high. So the bustling businessman teams up with the ingenious Latvian tailor Jacob Davis, who came up with the idea of ​​strengthening the seams of the pants with rivets. But a protection money patron dominates the port city and makes life difficult for them. And there are also difficulties with the patent.

They climb up mountainous paths, swim across rivers or fight their way through icy wastelands with -50 degrees Celsius. Their path takes them through amazing natural landscapes, producing spectacular scenery for a very ordinary task. The participants, at times without shoes and for days at end, are mere students on their way to school.