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ANALOGUE NATIVES
expanded essay film, India / Germany 2001-2025, 26 mins, English
dual film projection 35mm & digital, 1:1.85, 24fps, colour, stereo
distribution
Light Cone Paris
AG Kurzfilm – Short Film Catalog
credits
a film by Bernd Lützeler
with ideas by Bernd Lützeler, Jeanno Gaussi & Shumona Goel
filmed & edited by Bernd Lützeler
with Mayur Kakde, Satish C Ajgaonkar & Swapnil B Sarnaik
narrated by Satish C Ajgaonkar, Swapnil B Sarnaik, Jaganath S Rangdhol & Kishore Rathod
processed at Filmlab India, Rauko Cine Labs
optical blow ups at Ramnord Research Laboratories, Rauko Cine Labs
reverse telecine at Ramnord Research Laboratories, Studio Sound N Vision
scanned at Filmlab India, NoMasala Films, Prasad Film Labs
supported by Akademie der Künste
with funds from Federal Government Commissioner for Culture and the Media - BKM
as part of the programme Neustart Kultur
synopsis
This experimental documentary circulates around interviews with four veterans who worked all their lives in analogue (=celluloid) film laboratories and animation studios in Mumbai, and who all lost their businesses and jobs around 2012–14, when the Hindi film industry went through a drastic shift to digital production. They reflect on the loss of their craftsmanship, but also on the philosophies of their handmade film practice versus readymade digital solutions. While the film drifts into various related and unrelated scenarios, shot on the streets of Mumbai, we learn about the art of living and working under precarious conditions in India and survival strategies in one of the most crowded and commercial cities in the world. Finally everything results in a futile collage of nostalgia and memories, mashed up with the absurd aesthetics of AI slop.
An expanded multi-genre documentary within the constraints of the so-called Masala Formula, popularly known from Indian cinema.
awards
Best Documentary – Kollywood International Film Festival, Chennai, India 2026
Best Documentary – Sittannavasal International Film Festival, Karaiyur, India 2026
Best Documentary – Tamizhagam International Film Festival, Chennai, India 2026
Best Documentary – Athvikvaruni International Film Festival, Aranthanki, India 2026
Special Mention – Stuttgarter Filmwinter, Germany 2026
Best Documentary – Indian Independent Film Festival, Kolkata, India 2025
screenings
Big Muddy Film Festival, Carbondale, Illinois, USA 2026
dresdner schmalfilmtage, Dresden, Germany 2026
Kollywood International Film Festival, Chennai, Tamil Nadu, India 2026
Internationale Kurzfilmwoche Regensburg, Germany 2026
Sittannavasal International Film Festival, Karaiyur, Tamil Nadu, India 2026
Tamizhagam International Film Festival, Chennai, Tamil Nadu, India 2026
Athvikvaruni International Film Festival, Aranthanki, Tamil Nadu, India 2026
Chennai International Documentary and Short Film Festival, Tamil Nadu, India 2026
International Folklore Film Festival, Thrissur, Kerala, India 2026
Dhaka International Film Festival, Bangladesh 2026
Stuttgarter Filmwinter, Stuttgart, Germany 2026
Smita Patil International Short Film Festival, Pune, India 2026
Himachal Short Film Festival, Pune, India, 2025
Ooty Short Film Festival, Ooty, India, 2025
Madurai International Documentary and Short Film Festival, Madurai, India 2025
Harkat 16mm Film Festival, Mumbai, India 2025
Kasseler Dokfest, Dokumentarfilm- und Videofest, Germany 2025
Szczecin Film Festival, Szczecin, Poland 2025
Indian Independent Film Festival, Kolkata, India 2025
Fresta – International Festival of Analog Cinema of Pernambuco, Recife, Brazil 2025
Filmkunstfest Mecklenburg-Vorpommern, Schwerin, Germany 2025
Prisme #7, Nantes, France 2024 (work in progress - preview)
