Michael Berger: A Hysteria

CLEANING AND CLEANSING tells of the glamor and misery of hygiene. Without resorting to interviews or explanatory off-camera commentary, it stages its subject in a way that can be experienced by the senses. In doing so, it follows an analytical approach that thematizes hygiene as an order of the „healthy“ and the „harmful“, which is reflected in institutions, architectures and production processes and regulates human behavior. The filmthus raises a topic that has been central to our society since the beginning of modernity: the optimization and improvement of life, which – if pursued with too much commitment and carelessly – can quickly turn against itself.

A documentary following immigrants attending voluntary integration courses in Vienna.

„It used to be down to fate whether you gave birth to a disabled child. Today you can choose if you want to keep it or not.“ The results of prenatal screening can present would-be parents with a very difficult dilemma. Should a physically or mentally disabled child be allowed to live – or not be brought into the world at all? Who gets to decide what is normal and worthy of life? The filmic essay DIE DRITTE OPTION puts a new perspective on a highly controversial topic: while we listen to the statements of doctors, those who carry out prenatal screenings and the disturbing experiences of the couples affected, the visual level places the topic in a much wider socio-political context. Director Thomas Fürhapter’s debut film offers fascinating visual and acoustic impressions that tackle the core questions of birth, death, ethics and questions how far we should go when it comes to optimising our lives.