Afire

“An absorbing, barbed and frequently funny evisceration of artistic ego…”
– Justin Chang, Los Angeles Times.

“Arrives like a calm wind, and leaves with everything and everyone perfectly scorched.”
-Barry Hertz, Glove & Mail.

Co-Presented by the Goethe-Institut San Francisco

While vacationing by the Baltic Sea, writer Leon (Thomas Schubert) and photographer Felix (Langston Uibel) are surprised by the presence of Nadja (Paula Beer), a mysterious young woman staying as a guest at Felix’s family’s holiday home. Nadja distracts Leon from finishing his latest novel and with brutal honesty, forces him to confront his caustic temperament and self-absorption. As Nadja and Leon grow closer, an encroaching forest fire threatens the group and tensions escalate when a handsome lifeguard and Leon’s tight-lipped book editor also arrive. Using himself at a nadir of his existence as the stepping off point for his less-that-sympathetic lead, Christian Petzold’s acclaimed latest was the winner of the Silver Bear Grand Jury Prize at this year’s Berlin International Film Festival.

Organizing and supporting cultural events together with American institutions since 1967.