Time of transformation

After the peaceful revolution of 1989 and the subsequent unification process, many GDR citizens had great difficulty finding their place in a market economy that was still alien to them. A population that had set out to reshape itself had to learn that there was little space for their ideas of a society growing together. In this first phase of transformation, euphoric emotions quickly turned into feelings of powerlessness, melancholy, and frustration. Numerous DEFA documentaries from this period bear witness to these different feelings. In OSTERSPAZIERGANG (Peter Vatter, 1990), a 10th grade class from Berlin-Mahlsdorf interprets Goethe's "Faust" against the backdrop of awakening spring in a year of social upheaval. DER LETZTE ABSTICH (Heinz Brinkmann) about the demolition of the carbide factory in Buna and the uncertainty of the chemical workers was made in the summer of 1991. In ÖSTLICHE LANDSCHAFT (Eduard Schreiber, 1991), the symbols of the GDR on a garbage dump blow in the wind. A melancholy film opera. (Linda Söffker)

Films:
Osterpaziergang Peter Vatter GDR 1990 35 mm 30 min.
Der letzte Abstich Heinz Brinkmann GDR 1991 DCP 25 min.
Östliche Landschaft Eduard Schreiber GDR 1991 35 mm 13 min.