German village confronts wartime past in Golden Goblet Awards drama

By Joyce Xu

The cast of “Another German Tank Story,” a nominee for the Golden Goblet Awards Main Competition of the 26th Shanghai International Film Festival, discussed their production with media on Tuesday (June 18).

The German production, the feature directorial debut of Jannis Alexander Kiefer, whose short films are well-received at many festivals, delves into the intricate and precarious microcosms of small communities.

While an American film crew shoots a war series in a former sugar factory in Germany, the residents of the nearby village of Wiesenwalde chase their personal dreams.

But a sudden power failure threatens to disrupt all plans and a tank stands in front of the mayor's house.

“Despite a limited budget, I really enjoyed the film’s shooting and production, a process of free artistic creation for me,” said director Kiefer. 

The fictional characters, and their complicated and dramatic relationships, also provide insights into German society, culture and art.

Actor Roland Bonjour said that he was attracted to the script from the start.

“I also grew up in a small village in Germany, and I feel connected to the environment and atmosphere of the film backdrop,” Bonjour added.

Actress Meike Droste is a veteran of stage plays, but she noted that performing on stage is very different from the experience of starring in a movie.

“At theatres, actors perform with the attendance of a live audience,” said Droste. 

“But today when I watch this film, I have brand new understandings of the role I depicted around two years ago. With some new life experiences, I’m thinking whether I could offer new expressions and interpretations of the same character.”