Iris and Me: Till Kleinert’s experience: Cowboy & Boys village
DIRECTOR:
Till Kleinert
As part of the 10th anniversary celebrations IRIS AND ME offers a rare opportunity to see 2008 Iris Prize winner Till Kleinerts powerful winning short film Cowboy and the haunting film he made using his prize, Boys Village. Both films have played at festivals globally with Boys Village taking a major award at a youth film festival in China. Till has been very busy since winning the Iris Prize 8 years ago, and after the screenings he will be in conversation with festival director Berwyn Rowlands. This is a FREE event.
Cowboy
Germany, 2008, 35 min
City dweller Christian, working for a real estate agent, comes to a deserted village where he meets country lad Cowboy. They spend the day and night together. When harvest starts at dawn the village shows its real face and the two men are forced to pay a terrible price in order to leave.
Boys Village
UK, 2011, 25 min
How can a ghost grow up?
The Boys’ Village was once a holiday home for coalminers’ sons, boasting a pool, sports yards and even a chapel of its own. Not much remains of its former glory, though. The place has been almost taken down to rubble by vandalism since it closed fifteen years ago. Shattered glass and debris are all over the place; graffiti on the walls. There are countless trap falls and opportunities for injury. A parent’s nightmare, it can be heaven on earth for a certain kind of child. It more or less is for Kevin. He has been eleven years old for quite some time now. Has it been years or decades?
Till Kleinert’s biography:
Born in 1980 in Berlin. Drew comics, then at the age of 15 a VHS-camera fell into his hands. Created his first steps in film, most ambitiously a 15-minute-long clay animation space adventure. Graduated from school in 2000, 2001 civilian service, interned at the Volksbühne Berlin theatre, and then became a sausage vendor. At the same time he made several self-financed and award-winning short films. Since 2004 Till Kleinert studies directing at the German Film and Television Academy (DFFB). Since 2005 he is part of the filmmaker’s collective Schattenkante.
