1000 stories by Florian Thalhofer

Two filmmakers, each in the other’s country – a German in the U.S., an American in Germany. They interviewed people they came across and reported and translated their experiences into short films.The two journeys took place simultaneously, between October and November of 2007. The routes were not planned beforehand; almost all of their encounters were by chance. In the U.S. Florian Thalhofer traveled by motorcycle, in Germany Marc Simon went by car. What emerged is a portrait of two countries seen from the perspective of the outsider.1000 stories

Born in 1972, Florian Thalhofer is a documentary filmmaker, a media artist, and the inventor of the Korsakow System, a software to create database narratives. His work has been honored with the Literatur.Digital Award, the Red Dot Design Award, and the Werkleitz Award, among others. Thalhofer studied at the University of the Arts Berlin and, after finishing his degree, worked there as a lecturer for several years. He was a guest professor at the German Literature Institute Leipzig (DLL), and teaches at the Mediamatic Institute in Amsterdam. Several of Florian Thalhofer’s Korsakow films have already been released, the most recent one [13thShop] – 31 days in a shopping mall – published by mairisch-Verlag, Hamburg, and [Forgotten Flags] – Germany after the 2006 World Cup – by Mediamatic, Amsterdam.

Mark Simon is an American-German photographer and filmmaker, living and working in Berlin, Germany. He has worked on assignment in Europe, North America, South America, Asia, Africa, and the Middle East, and is currently directing a film, “Gay and Happy,” dealing with the reality of young homosexuals from four different countries (Argentina, Brazil, Italy, and Germany) who come together to produce a theater workshop. The film is being shot on location in Berlin, Rome, and Porto Alegre, Brazil. Since 2004 Mark has also been coordinating and teaching the Media - Photography and Film - program for Lexia International’s Berlin study abroad curriculum. He has long been represented by the prestigious Black Star Photography Agency in New York.