Founded in 1985, the Munich Documentary Film Festival has meanwhile gained worldwide recognition. 121 films from 42 countries are being screened this year from 6 to 24 May during the festival’s 35th edition. The films will be shown via streaming on the Internet where tickets are available for the individual performances. 75 years after the liberation of Auschwitz concentration and extermination camp, the festival organizers are providing much food for thought with the series "Dok.focus lasting memories". The series is showcasing seven films from Argentina, Belgium, Denmark, Germany and Hungary, vividly depicting how the memories and pain still keep erupting in the families of victims, and how the long shadows of guilt continue to catch up with the perpetrators and their descendants.

For Auschwitz survivors the choice of the opening film is regarded as a particularly moving gesture: the multi-award-winning Hungarian film "The Euphoria of Being" by the Hungarian director Réka Szabó depicts the dancing encounter between the Auschwitz survivor Eva Fahidi and her youthful alter ego, the dancer Emese Cuhorka. In this film, the painful experiences and the grim memories of the Auschwitz survivors are expressed and soothed by the tenderness of the dance and movements of these two human beings as they interact ─ an outstanding film providing a deep insight into human creativity and the hope that always lies at its core.

More information: www.dokfest-muenchen.de