Vanja is a tiger, roaming the jungle, lurking, attacking. But when it gets dark, he is afraid – and when his sister Thea turns on the light, the brave tiger turns into a little boy in a completely leafless apartment. “I’m Not Afraid” is Vanja’s mantra, which he uses to hold his own in everyday life, when fantasy and reality blend seamlessly, when the dark staircase turns into a dungeon and the play of shadows into monsters. But also when he feels excluded by his older sister who does not want him to join in her games. Marita Mayer’s playful 2D animation follows Vanja through all emotional states and imaginary worlds, treats the needs of all children equally. Growing up is hard, being a child often is, too. But when everyone sees and understands the other it gets easier, and often it even becomes proper fun.

Marie Ketzscher

The collaborative artistic work of Menno de Noojer (son), Paul de Noojer (father) and Françoise de Noojer (mother), which oscillated between photography and experimental film, spanned almost fifty years. Rather than allowing posterity to label, categorise and, as the case may be, mothball their work, the three realised a final film together just before Paul de Noojer died, when he was already seriously ill. A last joint film as an exuberant self-homage, in which they combine experimental-documentary storytelling, performance, pixilation and stop motion, funny and sad moments, pathos and trash, a joy of putting on costumes and vulnerable nudity. With “Heaven is Blue? #2”, the Noojers celebrate life as a total work of art in which all processes of becoming human and all symptoms of decline have their place and death is a natural part of the whole.

Marie Ketzscher