Olympia 1936. Der verratene Traum

The two-part documentary “Automania” unfolds the history of the automobile as a relationship between man and machine. The car: drug, technical wonder, object of desire. Like hardly any other machine, the car is more than that. It is loved, cherished and cared for, protected and used for self-expression. At the same time, it is a sign of economic prosperity: whoever drives a (certain) car has made something of himself. And what applies individually also applies to societies: The car creates jobs and prosperity. But the dream relationship that lasted for 100 years has fallen into crisis. The films tell in an entertaining, moody and emotional way about the rise of the car to become an icon of the West and suggest future prospects. The films combine factual informations with nostalgically colourful memories of eyewitnesses. In addition, there are statements by experts as well as politicians and business representatives.

September 18, 2015: The U.S. EPA announces that VW has been cheating on the prescribed emissions test for years through electronic manipulation. A total of eleven million vehicles are affected. A storm of indignation rages, a scandal with a history. How could this happen? The documentary takes a look behind the scenes of the German company.