A FEW QUESTIONS FOR…CHRISSY GRUNDL FROM TRANSIT FILMFEST!

Under the motto HI, HOW ARE YOU?, the Transit Filmfest 2024 will take place in Regensburg’s old town cinemas from November 6 to 13 – a real autumn highlight and a permanent institution in November. This year, the Transit Filmfest celebrates its fifth anniversary! Throughout the year, the Transit team selects the films under the festival management of Chrissy Grundl. She is also the managing director of the Arbeitskreis Film e.V. and last year accepted the City of Regensburg’s cultural sponsorship award for the Transit Filmfest. This year’s festival will kick off with the opening film SHAHID and a concert by the jazz and krautrock band Embryo, who provided the soundtrack for the Transit festival trailer. And then it’s “Film off!” for seven days in Regensburg.

We are really looking forward to it and asked Chrissy Grundl a few questions in advance:

RegensburgNow: Dear Chrissy,How long have you lived in Regensburg and where have you lived so far? I was actually born and went to school in Regensburg. After a short stint in Munich, I finally went back to the University of Regensburg to study media science. To be honest, it was anything but my plan to stay here. At several points in my life, I was sitting on packed suitcases and was ready to finally move to a bigger city. But a lot of things happen differently in life; first love intervened, then the film festival and finally the cinema. Chrissy Grundl
(c) Transit Filmfest[/]

The Transit Film Festival will take place for the fifth time from November 6 to 13, 2024. An anniversary. What is the “Transit Filmfest” and what can we expect this year? The Transit Filmfest grew out of the Heimspiel Filmfest, which I – and others from the team – was also involved in when I was a student. We ourselves are never quite sure which “chronology” to choose and whether we are celebrating the 5th or 15th edition this year. Since “Heimspiel” became “Transit”, the festival has become more interdisciplinary: In addition to the film selection from the current festival season, we always have a retrospective, an exhibition (this time with neurodiverse and neurotypical art at M26), film and panel discussions as well as numerous live shows in the program. This year we are particularly looking forward to Tocotronic singer Dirk von Lowtzow, the German avant-garde director and driving force behind New Queen Cinema Monika Treut, the Munich jazz and krautrock legends “Embryo” and the psychedelic rock band “Wand” from Los Angeles. Which guest of honor have you been particularly happy about in the past 5 years? The best thing is when people who you adore a little turn out to be wonderfully likeable. The two film scholars Karola Gramann and Heide Schüpmann and the director Jeanine Meerapfel, for example, were three true grande dames of the industry who were full of praise for our program and our festival. It was similar with Wolfgang Müller, Sophia Kennedy and Mensa Reents. All three are to a certain extent icons of the indie scene. This year I’m really looking forward to Dirk von Lowtzow. As a Tocotronic fangirl, I have to say that my heart is already pounding a little… How did you actually get into ‘film’? My first job was as a ticket taker at the Garbokino. Of course, between tearing off tickets and cleaning up the theater, I inhaled every movie that was on. I then tried my hand at making my own short film during my art A-levels. Later, I studied media studies, worked at the chair at the same time and read a lot of what I had to scan for the lecturers. Later, I taught at the university myself and gave seminars (e.g. on the subject of women in horror films). In the meantime, I’ve been exploring the Regensburg cinema and festival scene – first as a visitor, then more and more often as a helper and eventually as a co-organizer. Since 2021, I’ve been running a small cinema: the Filmgalerie im Leeren Beutel.

What do you like about Regensburg? The fact that you meet familiar faces every time you walk through the city can be both a blessing and a curse. Sometimes I long for anonymity and new impulses, but I wouldn’t want to miss the friendships and connections that have developed here over the years. And I like the movie pub. And what is not so? Sometimes I get the impression that I’m in a bubble that doesn’t have much to do with reality. In a medieval Disneyland where everything is neat and tidy, but there is little room for experimentation and thinking outside the box. The fact that I know almost every stone here by name also makes me quite nervous sometimes. Then I urgently need to go to Berlin and ride the subway a bit. What is exciting about your work? The exciting thing about my work is the audience. There’s nothing better than a full movie theater or concert hall at events you didn’t expect. And the reactions after the events are also incredibly exciting – the faces and the murmurs after the movie. Of course, it’s especially great when we have the filmmakers as guests and a conversation develops between them and the audience. When the viewers put into words what fascinated / surprised / impressed / disturbed them. After an evening of Netflix alone in front of your laptop, rarely does anyone ask you that. Stupid question: Do you have a favorite film? A question that I am often asked and then always have to answer differently. Today I’ll just say SHINING by Stanley Kubrick and SUNSET BOULEVARD by Billy Wilder. I recently saw the old BEETLEJUICE in the cinema again – that was my favorite film as a child. Is there someone who inspires you? These are actually the young people with whom I organize the festival. Every year, new students join our team with new views on the world and society. I find that super inspiring and it also helps me to keep questioning myself. Everyone always talks about mobility in old age – I hope I can remain flexible in my viewpoints and interests for as long as possible.

The festival team! Photo: Transit Filmfest

Do you have a favorite place or favorite spot in or around Regensburg? At the moment I like walking along the Danube to the west. The railroad bridge near Prüfening to the Naabspitz somehow has an attractive effect on me. And now the Regensburg question: Knackersemmel or Prinzess chocolates? Since I started eating meat again: Knacker with everything, clear thing. Back to the Transit Filmfest. Which movie should we definitely not miss? Almost as difficult as the favorite film question… of course all the films are worth seeing, otherwise they wouldn’t have made it into the program. But if you really want that festival feeling, you should come to the screenings followed by Q&As: In DER SPATZ IM KAMIN, Ramon Zürcher stages smouldering family conflicts with abysmal comedy, in ALL WE EVER WANTED, Frédéric Jaeger lets his protagonists sizzle in a polyamorous love triangle under the Spanish sun and in Sara Summa’s nostalgic and warm family road trip ARTHUR & DIANA, we feel transported back to the vacation trips of our childhood. All three directors and parts of the cast will be joining us in Regensburg. PLAY DEAD! is a morbid film diary in which diabetic and body horror fan Matthew Lancit reflects on his own illness. Director Julia Niemann will present her grotesque comedy VENI VIDI VICI – a bitter commentary on the anarcho-capitalism of the Austrian upper class. Things are a little more cozy in HALLO SPENCER. Director Timo Schierhorn and producer Julia Michel are personally bringing the remake of the German puppet show to Regensburg for the only cinema screening before the film is shown on ZDF. Thank you so much for the great interview, dear Chrissy!

From November 6 to 13, Transit will be showing over 50 innovative, authoritative and controversial films from the current cinema and festival season as well as (re)discovered classics. This year’s festival edition is divided into three sections: the international main section, a retrospective and the interdisciplinary thematic section Close Encounters. Supported by Aktion Mensch, this section is dedicated to neurological diversity in art and film.

In addition to a varied film program with expert moderations and Q&As with exciting filmmakers, there is also a diverse supporting program. A panel discussion, an accompanying exhibition in the Close Encounters section as well as concerts and parties will make the festival week an unforgettable experience.

One-way tickets (9 euros/7 euros concessions) are available online at www.transit-filmfest.de/programm/, festival passes (54 euros/42 euros concessions) at the festival office in the Filmgalerie im Leeren Beutel and at the university (Chair of Media Studies, PT 3.0.54). Further information on the program can be found at www.transit-filmfest.de.

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