Concrete Gold

The house in Berlin, where director Katrin Rothe has been living for years, one day gets a new owner. It marks the beginning of a systematic and inhumane eviction, despite valid rental agreements. Fear gives rise to resistance. With her camera, the first-person narrator captures the tenants’ months-long struggle against intimidation and harassment. What she couldn’t film, she recreates through animated scenes. Katrin Rothe shows how one can resist in seemingly hopeless situations. Unleashed gentrification affects people throughout Berlin and major cities around the world.

“CONCRETE GOLD” emotionally and touchingly tells the story of a community suddenly caught in the whirlwind of the global real estate frenzy.

CREW
Director & Screenplay: Katrin Rothe
Cinematography: Martin Langner
Editing: Silke Gänger
Music: Thomas Mävers
Narrator: Tina Pfurr
Storyboard & Designs: Caroline Hamann

Animation: Jonathan Webber, Ulf Grenzer, Alexander Pierschel, Lucy Nehmitz, Stefanie Saghri, and Katrin Rothe
Sound Design & Mixing: Klemens Fuhrmann, Oliver Schmerwitz
Color Correction: Matthias Behrens
Dramaturgical Consulting: Astrid Herbold
Legal Consulting: Alexandra Hölzer, Carola Handwerg, Heinz Paul

Assistants: Biljana Garvanlieva, Sandra Kocanez, Michael Schmacke
Post-Production Coordination: Jens Körner
Production Management (rbb): Reiner Baumert
Editorial Team: Dagmar Mielke & Gabriele Conrad.

Katrin Rothe is an award-winning author and director of films. She combines animation with other formats, focusing on thorough research and a close connection to the people she portrays.

Her television debut, “Dunkler Lippenstift macht seriöser” (Dark Lipstick Makes You Look More Serious), a 60-minute documentary film, follows two university graduates in their job search. It screened at numerous festivals and was nominated for the German Television Award in 2004.

Her documentary film “BETONGOLD” showcases apartment viewings with potential buyers in an occupied rental apartment in Berlin Mitte. The film received the Adolf Grimme Award in 2014, the 3Sat Documentary Award for the Best German-language Documentary, and the Journalists’ Prize “Der lange Atem” (The Long Breath).

In 2017, she released her historical animation film about the Russian Revolution from the perspective of participating artists. It embarked on a festival tour around the world. A making-of of the film, which stood out for its unconventional style, was exhibited at the Ilmin Museum of Modern Art in Seoul, the Animatorium in Zurich, and Trickywoman Vienna in 2018. In 2019, the DIAF (German Institute for Animated Film) dedicated an exhibition to her at the Technische Sammlungen Dresden.

Early on, she explored the narrative possibilities of animation. In “Was tust Du eigentlich…?” (What Are You Actually Doing?), she visualized Vox Pop interviews using collage animation, which was innovative for television at the time. In the feature film “Die Ex bin ich” (I’m the Ex), the house squatter Bert, who has just taken his own life, appears as an animated character in flashbacks. In the travel documentary with Kurt Krömer and Steffen Möller, she incorporated informative comedy and interesting facts about Poland through animation segments. Her documentary series “Stellmichein,” which she was able to produce right after her television debut, received the Adolf Grimme Award in 2007 for its combination of dramatic documentary and animated parts that capture what the camera cannot film.

Katrin Rothe studied Experimental Film Design at the University of Arts Berlin and Fine Art Video at CSM London.

Films Online
1917 – der wahre Oktober (90 min, VOD, 4,32€) Untertitel: Englisch, Französisch, Russisch, Spanisch, Koreanisch, Kroatisch, Portugiesisch
Betongold auf Sooner (52min) oder youtube.com (44 min)
Wildwest im Thälmannpark (45min) auf vimeo.com oder rutube.ru
Herzlichen Glückwunsch zum Geburtstag, die Mainzer wird geräumt (45min, VOD, 2,99€, pantaflix)
Die Ex bin ich (90min, 2,99€, vimeo)
Was tust Du eigentlich? (4x3min, Vimeo)
Dunkler Lippenstift macht seriöser (60min, Vimeo)

Kurzfilme / Shorts online:
Meine Wende, unsere Einheit (5/11) (6 Min, zdf)

English / English Subtitles:
1917 – The real October (90 min, VOD, 2,99€) Subtitles: english, french, russian, spain, korean, croatian, portuguese
Concrete Gold – How the financial crisis fluttered into my livig room (52min, vimeo.com)
What Do you do…? (4x3min, Vimeo)

PRESS (in German)
Taz überregional 30.5.2013, “Platte oder Stadtrand”,
ZDF, Mittagsmagazin “Finanzkrise im Wohnzimmer, Sendung vom 30.5.2013,
Berliner Zeitung 30.5.2013: “In Wirklichkeit war alles noch viel schlimmer.”
Taz Berlin 27.5.2013 über den Tag des Mieters in der Volksbühne
Kurzinterview im Tip Stadtmagazin Berlin “Das Leben ist keine Rechenaufgabe”
Interview im Freitag, 29.5.2013 von Maxi Leinkauf “Wir hatten wenig Spielraum”,
Kölner Stadtanzeiger online: “Im Strudel des Immobilienhypes” Kölner Stadtanzeiger Print: “Entmieten strengstens verbieten” ,www.welt.de “Besichtigungsterror in der Berliner Bergstraße”
Auch interessant sind die z.T. anonymen Kommentare zu den Artikeln, auch in der arte Mediathek, (aber auch die auf Borck-Immobilien, die das Haus 2011 für die jüdische Erbgemeinschaft vermakelt hatten und ‘nur’ das Dachgeschoss vermakel(t)en. vom 23.5.2014

andere mutige Journalisten und Mieter über Sascha Klupp und die Inter Group:
Verena Hasel, Tagesspiegel 6.10.2013 “Investoren gegen Mieter: Da ist die Tür”,
Sebastian Höhn, Berliner Zeitung, 3.Juni 2014, Wenn Sascha Klupp ein Haus sanieren lässt…
Berliner Kurier (war mit Titelblatt)“Brutal-Sanierer von Mietern gestoppt”,

Katrin Rothe in TALKS zum Thema
West.art, wdr “Zwischen Luxusgetto und Armutsviertel. Klassenkampf in den Städten”?
Diskussion im Anschluss an Filmvorführung bei den Grünen hier als Stream.
Interviews auf rbbKultur, inforadio und Radio1 am 30.10.2013,
im Talk mit Beckmann, ARD 30.1.2014, 22:45

Blogs:
gentrification blog, und Annalist

FESTIVALS & AWARDS
Adolf-Grimme-Preis 2014, Jurybegründung hier
3Sat Dokumentarfilmpreis für den besten deutschsprachigen Dokumentarfilm 2013, Duisburger Filmwoche, Laudatio
Der Lange Atem, 3.Preis