Meet the Maestro

Meet the Maestro: Meet Haneke 'Meet the Maestro' looks at the motives and approach of a foreign director. Who is s/he, what is his/her cultural background and what ideas are behind the making of his/her films? In the coming four editions of the festival in Rotterdam, Meet the Maestro will focus on a different maker each year. This year, it is film auteur and maestro Michael Haneke. The Austrian Michael Haneke (1942, Munich) is one of the best-known and most controversial European film makers. He says that his films are intended as 'a polemic statement against American cinema'. He makes cinema that does not provide answers, but poses questions, and in which violence always plays an important role. His films are provocative and make a call for dialogue, unlike American cinema, in which consumption and consensus are the most important elements. His unique vision makes him an eagerly awaited guest at the festival. Haneke studied philosophy and psychology in Vienna. From 1967 to 1970, he worked as a scriptwriter for the German television channel ARD, from 1970 as a freelance scriptwriter and director. He has also directed theatre in Munich, Vienna and Venice. All his features, including Benny's Video and Funny Games, have been screened in Rotterdam. Code inconnu, his first French feature, marked Haneke's definitive breakthrough with a mass audience. La pianiste was also a major success with audiences and international film critics. Haneke's latest film, Caché, will première during the festival. Two film makers have been commissioned by the festival to make a film inspired by the work of Haneke. These films, Tango apasionado by Jan Krüger and Linerboard by Jens Jonsson, will also be screened at the festival. Meet the Maestro is an initiative of the Province of South Holland, realised by the International Film Festival Rotterdam, Film in Zuid-Holland and Kunstgebouw.