JOURNEY TO THE SUN
O.V. in Portuguese and German subtitled in Spanish and English
Following the famous "children of Russia" of the Spanish Civil War, there also existed the "children of Austria", sent in mass to Portugal during the Second World War. This film chronicles this astonishing story through the testimony of those very same children today, voices that lead a weightless and exquisite piece of work featuring photos and home movies of the time. The moving personal memories intersect with the history beyond the official narratives, the inequalities of class, and the contrast of sunny Portugal with a devastated Austria, in a film by Susana de Sousa Dias, the director of 48.
Direction: Ansgar Schaefer, Susana de Sousa Dias
Screenplay: Ansgar Schaefer, Susana de Sousa Dias
Cinematography: Mário Espada, Nikolaus de Macedo Schäfer
Editing: Susana de Sousa Dias, Mário Espada, Nikolaus de Macedo Schäfer, Ansgar Schaefer
Sound: Dídio Pestana, André Neto
Cast: Alfred Dier, Anneliese Ziegler, Annemarie Wiesmeier, Erika Wieser, Gerhard Schiesser, Gerlinde Weingartner, Gertrud Fernandes, Hannelohre Mauracher, Heidi Haiderer, Heinzi Müller, Herta Nietruch, Hildegard Schultz, Hildergard Berghofer, Ilse Raab, Ingeborg Kremsner, Margarete Ammesberger, Marthe Sekanina, Dr. Renate Plachy, Silvia Brunner, Ursula Mertin, Waltraud Hofinger
Production: Ansgar Schaefer, Elsa Sertório, Rui Ribeiro
Production Company: KINTOP
Distributor: Portugal Film
International Sales: Portugal Film - Portuguese Film Agency
Susana de Sousa Dias
Lisboa, 1962. Susana de Sousa Dias holds a Ph.D. in Fine Arts (Audiovisuals), a Master’s degree in Aesthetic and Philosophy of Art, a Bachelor of Film and graduated in Painting and studied music at the Conservatory. Still Life (2005), 48 (2009), Obscure Light (2017) and Fordlandia Malaise (2019) are her most acclaimed films. De Sousa’s filmography has been screened at several festivals, such as the Berlinale, the Viennale, Visions du Réel, Sarajevo, Torino, PhotoEspaña and Documenta, as well as being the subject of various retrospectives. DocLisboa was managed by her for two years and she is currently a professor at the Faculty of Fine Arts in Lisbon. Journey to the Sun (2021) is her latest film co-directed with Ansgar Schaefer and it won the Árvore da Vida Award at IndieLisboa.
Ansgar Schaefer
Ansgar Schaefer is a producer and founder of the production company Kintop, and holds a P.h.D. in Contemporary History of Portugal. Documentaries like Fordlandia Malaise (2019), Sobre tudo sobre nada (2018), Obscure Light (2017) and 48 (2009) were produced by him and premiered at top-tier festivals. Schaefer also wrote some publications on history and organised exhibitions on the subject. The documentaries A Outra Guerra (2010) and Journey to the Sun (2021) are co-directed by Schaefer alongside Susana de Sousa Dias, who received the Árvore da Vida Award at IndieLisboa.
