The documentary GIRL GANG by director Susanne Regina Meures tells the story of the steep rise of 14-year-old influencer Leonie from East Berlin. Many companies want to use her to promote their products, Leonie’s parents take over the management. But the merciless pressure of the market has consequences for Leonie and her family.
The film was released in German cinemas on 20 October 2022, having already attracted attention at numerous festivals. Among others, it won the audience award at the Dokfilm Festival Munich.
When asked why she used framing elements such as the fairy tale and a choral score, the director replied in an interview: … I knew that the film needed an additional layer. The beginning of “Once Upon a Time” creates a distance to something we see every day: People or even girls glued to their mobile phones. I believe that through the fairy tale we look at the images again with a fresher eye and with more curiosity. … The music connects the audience with the religious quality of the theme, with the longing for belonging that we all feel inside.
Studio Babelsberg: Sound recording for GIRL GANG
“The music … is vocal and solemn, a kind of church choir, elfin sounds from remote spheres”. (Sennhauser’s film blog) It was written by the composer and choral conductor Sabine Wüsthoff, who also brought 13 of her singers from the Berlin Girls’ Choir, which she directs, to the recording studio. The synergy is audible and perceptible. Ideally matched to the voices of “her girls” and sensitively set to the images by the director, the “very emotionalised music … makes it very difficult to … makes it very difficult to … to maintain a neutral point of view. … (But) even if the use of music seems manipulative in parts, no negative image about the world of social media emerges here.” (Rieck’s Film Reviews)
GIRL GANG (CH 2022, 98 min.)
Director: Susanne Regina Meures
Editing: Katja Dringenberg
Sound: Jacques Kieffer
Music: Berlin Girls Choir
Producer:inside: Christian Frei, Susanne Regina Meures
Film website: https://www.girlgang-film.com/
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