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24/7 THE PASSION OF LIFE

a film by Roland Reber
Germany 2005, erotic drama, 115 min, rated 18

  • “A wild mélange of poetry and obscenity … located somewhere between Jess Franco and Peter Greenaway…“ (Süddeutsche Zeitung)  
  • “A poetic Odyssey through Lust and Passion, between perversion and convention. In any case a film that is not ordinary.” (filmstarts.de)
  • “24/7 The Passion of Life” liberates the milieu from dirt, mess and  the prejudice of dark violence.” (Abendzeitung)
  • „Fantastic film. Courageous. Human. Powerful.“ (Thomas Sing, humanistic scientist)

2006 for one year in German cinemas
In celebration of the international BDSM-day it will be screened every year in cinemas on 24th of july.
Since 29th of september 2006 available on DVD (with English and Spanish subtitles)
German premiere: International Hof Film Festival 2005

with Marina Anna Eich, Mira Gittner, Christoph Baumann, Michael Burkhardt, Reinhard Wendt
camera: Mira Gittner (DoP), Roland Reber
editing: Mira Gittner
music: Wolfgang Edelmayer
line producer: Marina Anna Eich
producers: Patricia Koch, Marina Anna Eich
written and directed: Roland Reber
production, sales & distribution: wtp international GmbH

SHORT SYNOPSIS

24/7 The Passion of Life is a provocative and poetic film about obsession and loneliness, about secret lust and public double-moral: 24 hours a day, 7 days a week.

The hotelier’s daughter Eve (Marina Anna Eich) coincidently meets the sociologist Magdalena (Mira Gittner) who works as the dominatrix “Lady Maria” in an S&M-Studio. Fascinated by the bizarre world of Lady Maria, Eve begins the search for her own identity and goes on an odyssey through the world of sexuality – a journey to the repressed landscapes of our soul.

SYNOPSIS

 24/7 The Passion of Life is a provocative and poetic film about the fear of ourselves, the fear to face ourselves in the mirror of our passions in a society ridden by taboos and double-morals: 24 hours a day, 7 days a week – the Passion of Life.

The hotelier’s daughter Eve (Marina Anna Eich) coincidently meets the sociologist Magdalena (Mira Gittner), who works as the dominatrix „Lady Maria“ in an S&M Studio.

Fascinated by the bizarre world of “Lady Maria” and noticing that in her ideal world there is everything but lust and passion, she goes in search of her sexuality, her inner being. She starts an Odyssey through the hidden microcosms of Lust – places of which everybody pretends they do not exist but which still exist everywhere: S&M Studio, swingers club, striptease bar. This search also brings her in conflict with the normative constraints and double-morals of society.

Lady Maria relates the events in the S&M-Studio to religion – worship, confession, punishment as forgiving act – as well as to emotional moments like consolation, feeling secure and saying what’s on ones mind. In an apparently bizarre world, a warmth emerges, for the people, with their dark sides.

A lyrical study of obsession and loneliness, secret Lust and public double-morals: 24 hours a day, 7 days a week.

Lady Maria : „Society likes to have standardized people. They obey more easily. But
can emotions be standardized? Who puts forward these norms? Who standardizes
us? Who is living our life? Most people just exist, but they are not the living. Live
YOUR life.“

STATEMENT OF THE DIRECTOR
Roland Reber (director and scriptwriter):

In the film the subject of sexuality is also a metaphor for the search for identity. It is one way to get to know one’s self, to approach one’s self a little bit through self-definition. And it was important to me, not to make a film which says: do S&M and you are free, go to a swingers club and everything will be fine, no. Also the subject of loneliness, with which we face life, was important to me. It was immerging into a world which is not our everyday world. But we looked for
the dialogue with the people from each scene and tried to depict the atmosphere authentically. That was the point, how can we manage, as not being part of the S&M nor swingers scene, to make it credible. The film is fiction, but is based on research, i.e. really existing fantasies, persons, stories – out of the common milieu , as well as out of the respective scene.
Sexuality is an universal subject, that unfortunately is often only dealt with, to rise the viewing figures. A serious analysis – also with what we do not know – is not taking place most of the time.

24/7 – 24 hours a day, 7 days a week – THE PASSION OF LIFE, the story of Suffering and Life, of Lust and Passion – is a poetic film. Its semantic provokes and breaks our habitual, experienced and lived order.  In a sensitive way and far away from cliché the film shows, in emotional and humoresque, thoughtful and droll moments, the inner conflict of the protagonists who are in search of themselves. In doing so, it penetrates with a disarming honesty the areas  where the individual is completely alone, by himself – without offending the characters nor denouncing them, but accepting them neutrally as what they are, with all their tendency towards self realization and the loneliness which lies behind it, their searching and failing – it is the human being who is asked here.

Director and author Roland Reber: “ It was very important to us to deal seriously with the subject, through many interviews, research and literature. In 24/7 THE PASSION OF LIFE the subject of sexuality is also a metaphor for the search of identity, which is perhaps expressed more clearly in sexuality than in other areas, also a metaphor for life. The entire film is a symbolism and plays with archetypical elements.”

In the film, Sexuality is shown as a natural part of the human being, as lustful experience of one’s self and Life, as intense form of communication. It is not treated as a taboo subject or merely to raise the viewing figures but there is a respectful dealing which not only condemns a devaluation of the human being but renounces to any judgment.

Actress, cinematographer and script author Mira Gittner explains the approach:

„Sexuality is individual, and as there is no such thing as THE human being, there is not THE sexuality. For everyone sexuality means something different and nobody has the right to dictate how and if someone lives up to his sexuality, as long as it happens in mutual agreement. The point of the Movie is not a documentary representation but a poetic representation, not a purely physical  but also an intellectual analysis of the theme. It was not about showing several sexual techniques as libidinous physical exercises, but about the essence which is behind it, respectively what we think is behind it.

To show the whole range of possibilities of sexual expression would go far beyond the volume of a movie. Our intention was not to do a documentary about the S&M or swingers scene with all possible sexual practices, but a story about people. But it was important to us, to make an authentic depiction of the atmosphere of the S&M sessions and the swingers club.”

24 / 7 THE PASSION OF LIFE had its  first screening in October 2005 at the International Filmfestival Sitges in Spain and had its German premiere at the 39. Hof International Film Festival 2005 with three sold out screenings.

24 / 7 THE PASSION OF LIFE touches the people in their deeper layers. A film that is going to provoke controversial discussions.

SPECIAL WORKING METHOD

The film was made by team work, with a small team, where the members took over several tasks, in front of and behind the camera: Roland Reber is director, co-author, did the second camera and is taking care, together with Marina Anna Eich, of the international sales of the movie. The main actress Marina Anna Eich (role: Eve), also co-producer, did the catering and is responsible for the international sales. Mira Gittner was the director of photography, editor, co-author and plays the part of “Lady Maria” etc…

The script, based on an initial idea, starts with a few pages which are developed and extended during the on-going shooting. There was no improvisation. The scenes were developed during the shooting, written down and produced.

Roland Reber understands filmmaking as a creative adventure: „Everyone has the opportunity to bring in his ideas and creativity to the table. I do not believe in telling stories in a narrative style, as life is not like a Novel which follows only one direction. It is multi-dimensional with sudden turning points.”

Mira Gittner: „The imagination is given free rein. It is more akin to writing down one’s thoughts, associations, ideas, which later are put together, and assembled both intellectually and cinematically. Subsequently , the story evolves and writes itself automatically”.

The varied nature of life cannot be forced into authoritarian structures.

24 / 7 The Passion of Life might begin in a narrative way, but looses its linear style ending in a symbolic, nearly abstract act.

Roland Reber and Mira Gittner: “We are more interested in atmospheres, situations of development, the different states of mind of the characters, than in their entire explanation. It is more a poetic than a rational representation of the action. The characters do not give a complete explanation of their behaviour, but remain incomplete as in real life, because all our knowledge about ourselves and others is never complete. This “imperfection” leads to a deep insight into the human soul and with this to a multi-dimensional understanding.

The characters therefore often seem lost or lonesome, in their attempts to decode themselves. The mystery is the exciting, not the explicitness, because nobody is what he or she appears to be. It is up to the viewer to solve the characters’ mystery and to fill the distance with his emotions and associations, whatever these may be.”

The actors and their roles

When the decision was made to deal with the subject of sexuality in a movie, the very extensive preparation began. Especially the actors were exploring new territories with their roles. Besides literature and countless interviews, Mira Gittner (who plays the part of the dominatrix “Lady Maria”), stood in for a few nights in an S&M-Studio as guest-dominatrix, to get an impression of the happenings.

Mira Gittner: „For me this is a normal preparation process for a role. If I played a doctor, I would also try to look at the life in a surgery for a few days. As I did not get in touch with the S&M scene before, I wanted to make my personal experiences. I wanted to feel the atmosphere, the dealing with one another, the ordinariness, and the mundane. The S&M-Studio had to become usual to me. In addition I had to learn how to walk in high heels first. I normally wear sneakers in private. I think one can notice whether an actor holds a bond in his hand for the first time or not. As an actor you should not have any reservation towards your role. For me it was exciting to get the opportunity to delve into the to me unknown world of the S&M scene. The poetry, calm and devotion, that I partly experienced there, the tender, highly imaginative game and, above all, the communication between the persons involved,  impressed me. Through all these experiences, interviews and research, the role of “Lady Maria” was developed. This character is fiction, like all the movie is fiction, even if a few stories or persons are authentic, every scene is written and produced.”

Also for Marina Anna Eich, who played the part of Eve, the shootings to 24 / 7 The Passion of Life were a very special experience: “It was interesting to get to know how many people are in touch with this subject, but do hide this in public.” An experience besides the cameras made obvious to her, that the subject is omnipresent, but most often only practised discreetly behind closed doors: “In private I like to wear high heels. When I went shopping during the shooting, a man approached me. He explained to me, that he was a shoe fetishist and asked me if I would stand on his hand. At first I was astonished but I did it. He stood up again, thanked me happily and wished me a nice day.”

Besides many professional actors like Marina Anna Eich (Eve), Mira Gittner (Lady Maria) and Christoph Baumann (Dominik) etc…, some amateur actors also participated. The part of Mike e.g., played by the owner of the swingers club, started as a small part and was extended, during the shooting, to one of the main parts. That’s also how the role of Elfriede developed, played by Reinhard Wendt.

Location scouting

Director Roland Reber: “Locations like swingers club, S&M-Studio and striptease-bar were integrated into the story without being moral. How often do you see in German television a murder in a swingers club, the criminal in the S&M-Studio etc. always with a negative association. We wanted to treat the subject without being moral. We talked to a lot of people from each scene before the shooting and integrated their experience into the film.“

An important condition for creating an authentic atmosphere during the shootings, as well as in the movie, was to shoot at original sites. But the search for suitable sites was not always easy. The owner of the swingers club “La Boum” e.g. was not immediately enthusiastic by the idea of shooting a film there: “Shootings – here at our place? We are not interested at all… If you insist you may drop by” was his first reaction. Only after he realised (and somehow surprised) that it was in fact a serious project, was he willing to open his club to the film team. Afterwards it turned out, that his initial aversion was due to the fact that in several times in the past, neighbours tried to gain access to the club this way. And as a footnote, the owner of the club, Michael Burkhardt can be seen as “Mike”, which is one of the main parts, in 24/7 The Passion of Life. And as it is usual with wtp international, he also took over some other tasks (e.g. the modification of the “Maria-Mobil”, the installation of the cross etc…).

Additionally, during the first visit to the S&M-Studio, the film team had an interesting encounter. Behind the entry grid, a naked man with dog ears and a collar sat quietly in front of a water bowl. Against the expectation not all studio guests were concerned about discretion. The dominatrix introduced the naked man as “Bello, a nice Rottweiler” to the surprised Mira Gittner, who was put the leash in her hand to take Bello for a walk. This scene was put into the movie later.

CAST

Marina Anna Eich                                                    Eve
Mira Gittner                                                            Lady Maria
Christoph Baumann                                               Dominik
Michael Burkhardt                                                  Mike
Reinhard Wendt                                                      Elfriede
Sabine Krappweis                                                    Alexandra
Zoltan Paul                                                                 Father of Eva
Jan Lebr                                                                   Jan
Martin Bayer                                                           Franz
Lydia Hippel                                                             Lydia
Patricia Koch                                                           Stephanie Evans
Anja Schönleben                                                         Esther

and many others


CREW

director                                                                      Roland Reber
writer                                                                         Roland Reber, Mira Gittner
producers                                                                 Patricia Koch, Marina Anna Eich
camera                                                                      Mira Gittner (D.o.P.), Roland Reber
editing                                                                        Mira Gittner
music                                                                         Wolfgang Edelmayer
production                                                                wtp international GmbH

year of production                                                     2005
time of production                                                    July – December 2004
locations                                                                    Munich and the surrounding area, Austria

Awards: Jury Prize for BEST FILM, Faversham Film Festival, Kent, England 2013

FESTIVALS

Internationale Filmtage Hof, Germany 2005
Sitges Festival Internacional de Cinema, Spain 2005
Fantasporto International Filmfestival, Portugal 2006
Mar del Plata Independente Int`l Filmfestival, Argentinia 2006
International Filmfestival of India, Goa 2009
International Chennai Filmfestival, India 2009
Fünf Seen Film Festival, Starnberg, Germany 2009
Faversham Film Festival, Kent, England 2013
NYC Fetish Film Festival, New York, USA 2014
Nachtschatten Fetisch / BDSM Film Festival, Munich, Germany 2014

 

“The film tries to give an honest insight into the dark sides of the German soul, without brushing it aside ironically.” (Dr. Andreas Rost, Munich)

“A wild mélange of poetry and obscenity” (Sueddeutsche Zeitung, entire article)

“24/7 THE PASSION OF LIFE” wants to take the S&M and swingers scene out of the dirty corner.” (Abendzeitung, entire article)

“Who follows the film on its journey through S&M-Studio and swingers club, experiences in expressive pictures, abysses and heights of people in search of themselves, their corporeality and their God.” (Christian Herz, Dipl. Theologian.)

”Taking in account its subject, 24/7 THE PASSION OF LIFE offers an astonishing amount of comedy of the situation and amusement.” (Andreas Ströhl, former president International Filmfestival Munich)

„Fantastic film. Courageous. Human. Powerful.“ (Thomas Sing, Humanistic Scientist, University Augsburg, entire article)

“Exposing societys Hypocracy.” (Goa Messenger, entire article)

“24 /7 THE PASSION OF LIFE is a true independent film which will polarize because of its provoking subject. A poetic Odyssey through Lust and Passion, between perversion and convention. In any case a film that is not ordinary, that will split the audience and throw the film world into a turmoil.” (www.Filmstarts.de, Alina Bacher, entire article)

“Roland Reber shows Lust in all its variations as pure, neutral and especially as an inherent human motion and dismantles our society as hypocritical and bigoted. Realised with minimal technical resources the film impresses even more because of its pictures. The viewer remains observer and doesn’t become participant to the happening.” (Film magazine: WIDESCREEN 03/06, Julian Reischl)

„Stirring art house cinema, ambitious without moralizing undertone. Absolutely worth seeing!” (Robert aka fan, AK SM&Culture in Munich) 

“24 / 7 THE PASSION OF LIFE is the successful work of a strongly emotional drama of new German Film-Art.” (Dietmar Wladek, Journalist)

 “Probably the first German movie, that bothers of showing S&M like it is. But it is not a mere S&M film. But a film about how society is handling sexuality itself. A film about religion, moral and double moral.” (Schlagzeilen, renowned S&M Magazine, entire article)

 „… 24/7 The Passion of Life is a powerful affirmation of life, that explores with uncompromising reality the mendacity and self-deception of our lives and the cultures and religions that would have all of us behave robot-like in the expression and fulfillment of our most private sexual desires. That is movie making at its finest”. (Gordon Weaver, film publicist  – worked among others for Paramount in Marketing und Public Relations)

“A film that is worth seeing, which one has not to like, but which incites to reflection. There are not a great lot of films from which you could honestly say so. Worth seeing.” (Münchner Merkur, entire article)

“The film deeply touched me. It carefully shows, how people live up to their most secret sexual desires – without judging or condemning. An entertaining movie, that gets under the skin through its opened dealing with sexuality and love. A film which doesn’t gloss over anything and therefore does not leave anyone indifferent. Absolutely worth seeing!” (Christine Janson, Journalistin, Autorin « Connection Special II/05 »)

„Wonderful is the camera work. Many light effects are first rate. And altogether the film provides hot subjects to discussion, despite the uncommon, from time to time even dangerous and voyeuristic grounds it moves on. Even in art house theatres.“ (Programmkino.de, Thomas Engel, entire article)

The „thelemic“ answer to Gibsons „Passion of Christ“. A broadside to the conditioning of society By Federico Tolli, Bishop of the free catholic church of Wiesbaden, Theologian, entire article

„Possible that religion teachers appraise it – and want to deal with the subject in their high school classes.” (Alfred Rott, Dipl. Theologian, entire article)

“It is nevertheless a bold experiment, one that can only be made by self-financed film companies like WTP International. Thank ‘God’ for independent cinema – Amen..!” (thirstyrabbit.net; entire article)

INTERVIEW WITH DIRECTOR ROLAND REBER (Director, writer, camera)

How did the initial idea to the film come?

RR: It was during the Film Festival in Cannes. I had an appointment for lunch with an American producer and director. On the table, there were paper place mats, with the notice of a “24/7 office service in Cannes”. Then I said to the American, look, do you have 24/7 too – which is an expression from
the S&M scene in Europe. He said yes, we have restaurants opened 24 hours too. Then we started to discuss, about moral concepts and clichés, because he knew only clichés. There I said, well, I am not an SMer, I do not belong to any scene, but I can not imagine that dominatrixes are the way they are shown on RTL. And so the discussion became more and more profound and that’s when we said, wouldn’t that be  a subject – the subject of hidden sexuality: hidden not only from the eyes of our neighbours but above all hidden to ourselves. And then we started a long research in striptease bars, in swingers clubs, in all the places which are pretended not to exist, but which everybody knows. And so the idea to the film slowly developed. In the film the subject of sexuality is also a metaphor for the search for identity. It is one way to get to know one’s self, to approach one’s self a little bit through self-definition. And it was important to me, not to make a film which says: do S&M and you are free, go to a swingers club and everything will be fine, no. Also the subject of loneliness, with which we face life, was important to me

What does the title 24 / 7 mean?

RR: 24 hours a day, seven days a week – another expression for “always”.

The film tells about a “journey to the world of sexuality” and also plays with the to us “alien” like the dominatrix Studio. Did the research mean stepping into alien worlds too?

RR: It was immerging into a world which is not our everyday world. But we looked for the dialogue with the people from each scene and tried to depict the atmosphere authentically. That was the point, how can we manage, as not being part of the S&M nor swingers scene, to make it credible.

How far is the film fiction and how much of it is based on research?

RR: The film is fiction, but is based on research, i.e. really existing fantasies, persons, stories – out of the common milieu for example the character of the
father, as well as out of the respective scene, like the character of Elfriede, which was then integrated into the story.

Was it difficult to produce the sometimes very explicit sex scenes with the actors?

RR: No. It was up to the actor to define his own limits and to realize them. This kind of work has been my principle for over 20 years. For me actors are not henchmen of the director or the author, but creative artists who develop their roles. I’m not suited to the work of a tamer. Instead I see myself as a conductor who coordinates the work of the soloists.

Your actors are not only actors but often also involved in other parts of the filmmaking – for example the editing, cinematography, script, production etc. Yourself  are not only the director of the film, but also wrote the script and take care of the distribution. What are the advantages of this working method?

RR: In the film industry there has been an ongoing specialisation – a fragmentation of the creativity. Many colleagues think there should be a division between the artistic, technical and administrating positions. I do not think so. Creativity is not divisible – not to be understood separately – but is always a holistic process.  We are not a company that produces films, we are filmmakers. Filmmakers make films. And this is an integral process – and one to enjoy. Mira Gittner for example, not only played one of the main parts, but was also the director of photography and the editor of the movie and wrote the script together with Marina Anna Eich, also one of the main parts, is responsible for the international sales, the distribution and the public relations. Like this we represent “our” film, and not a product from other people. I would never talk of “my movie”, but always “our” – it is teamwork. Many actors often see themselves in a fulfilling position. They say: “I took part in a movie”. They distance themselves with the argument that they are only actors. With us nobody is “only”. The film industry is dominated by bankers and businessmen. They rob the film’s soul. If I see these puffed-up would-be film representatives, I know that it is time to give back the films to those, who do not consider a film as an investment, but as a statement – the filmmaker.

You shot at original sites, amongst others in an S&M-Studio and in a swingers club. How did that influence the working on the movie?

RR: A film studio is always scenery that lacks life. It remains an artificial place. We wanted to shoot at places which made it possible to everyone participating, to feel the authenticity.

The surrounding is not very common – was there any reluctance (in dealing with the “real” persons involved)?

RR: The set of a swingers club or an S&M-Studio is not common, but the people frequenting them are. If one looks behind the “scenery” or the “costumes” of these areas, one meets ordinary people who perhaps try to take off their ordinariness for a little while. I would define it as a Disneyland for adults. And fear and repulsion do only emerge because we do not know something, because it is alien. And I think it is alarming that in the 21st century, it really happened, when we told that we were going to shoot a film that is located among other places in an S&M Studio, well educated and intelligent people seriously asked us, how we were going to protect ourselves when frequenting “these” people. I thought the question was amusing, because many people whom I met in the S&M Studio were so harmlessly normal, that they would have been very disappointed, if they had come with us.

Was there an experience during the shooting that particularly impressed you?

RR: Every day of the shooting impressed me. Surely there were some experiences that will be one of my anecdotes now. To tell all of them would take too long for this interview. Already the research for the movie often brought us into situations which are worth to remember. For example as we looked for the location for the scenes in the swingers club, the owner of the swingers club nearly slammed  the door in our face, thinking neighbours sent us to spy out his guests. Also the casting of the “real swingers” was somehow appealing. Especially because we had to make clear, that we were not shooting the 160th part of “Liebe Sünde” or an erotic show for RTL. If you use the term “impress”, I can tell you from my experience, that something which we do not know leaves an impression. As soon as the unknown gets part of our experiences, it loses it’s emphasised position and becomes ordinary. In our production notes, you can find many occurrences, which demonstrate this.

What was your motivation to deal with the subject of sexual obsession/perversion? What do you want to show the viewer?

RR: Sexuality is an universal subject, that unfortunately is often only dealt with, to rise the viewing figures. A serious analysis – also with what we do not know – is not taking place most of the time. Perverted comes from the Latin word “perversus” (twisted) – nothing negative at first. In our society, pervert is mostly used in a pejorative way. For me, terms of our politics and social moral are perverted. For me, a person who prostitutes herself every day in work, family and society is more perverted than a person that lives up to her sexual inclination. Evidently only if he respects the self-determination and the freedom of the opposite. In every city these places (Swingers club, striptease bar, S&M-Studio, whorehouse) exist, which the society hides with shame and still visits. Many even hide their sexual fantasies from themselves. They try to fit the predominant opinion, not to stand out. But like this, they do not make the fantasy undone. They prefer to wait for the next vacation, carnival, or the Oktoberfest… All this was motivation enough for us to deal with this subject.

How do you see the subject of sexuality in relation with society?

RR: In the mid 70ies I thought, the times of sexual repression, and that this should be a subject at all, were over and that it was finally liberal. But I observe, especially since the 90ies, a strong conservative tendency, only that the appearances are deceptive and the surface seems liberal. We see naked people in magazines, the people dress in a sexy way, but there is nothing behind it. There is a sexual denial which probably is politically intended. Society defines some rooms to move and as long as you move inside of them – that’s what I mean by surface – it appears liberal. But as soon as you move outside, you will quickly experience the boundaries. I think we should quickly achieve a tolerance inside society, where the sexual inclination is no longer the base of a professional or social judging, but really private.

The film also plays with a certain religious symbolism. Where do you see the relation to religion?

RR: In this society we are all formed by a Christian conception of the world since 2000 years, whether we want or not, whether we belong to a religious community or not. And therefore also by a 2000 year old sexual moral, which is the achievement of the roman-catholic church and influences our world unquestioned – where does this moral concept come from, is it constructed, who constructed it, why was it constructed. I am not hostile to religion, all the opposite, I think everyone should believe in what he wants. This is the first relation to religion. The second one is, that sexuality is also a search for identity, for surmounting the loneliness, a search for the own self and an origin, however we want to call it. Religion and Sexuality have a great relation, if one accepts it.

Besides the main actresses Marina Anna Eich and Mira Gittner one can also see amateur actors in 24/7 – The Passion of Life. How was the casting for this movie?

RR: Besides many professional actors, also some people from the scene have participated in the movie. For the minor roles in the swingers club we wanted to take “non-swingers” at first. But I think this would have become embarrassing. One who is not used to sit on bar stools in underwear or tiger-tanga and should appear natural, will fail in this task. So we asked the owner of the swingers club to ask in between his guests, who is interested in participating in a movie. After that we had many conversations and then made the choice. The shootings were very agreeable, because every one involved was having fun. At the S&M-Studio the guests soon noticed that there were shootings going on. One or the other approached us and we chose two of them.

How did you come to filmmaking?

RR: I worked at theatre as an actor, author and director for twenty years in Germany and internationally. If I wanted to say something, I wrote a play and produced it. At a time, there was the point where I noticed that the stage has restricted borders which should be exceeded. That’s how I came to filmmaking, because cinema gives me the creative freedom and is nearer to the spectator than theatre is. For me, filmmaking is like talking and it is nearer to myself. But as I do not understand myself entirely, I do not understand my films entirely. Even if the films I make have a particular handwriting, the stile and the handling of each movie depends on the subject, which is different from one to another.

What is your next project?

RR: At the moment I do research, together with Mira Gittner, to the subject of mind control. It is an exciting subject, that is again treating a hot, even if not sexual, subject. It is about manipulation, secret research and politics. The question about “perversion” would be more adequate there.