A German Youth

8 10
2015
92min

English German French

English

Country: Switzerland Germany France

Original Title: Une jeunesse Allemande

A German Youth (Une Jeunesse Allemande) explores the story of the Red Army Faction, the revolutionary terrorist group founded by Andreas Baader and Ulrike Meinhof in 1970s Germany. Built entirely from archival footage, the film reflects on the meaning of their struggle and its echo in today’s world.

English German French
English
Country: Switzerland Germany France
Original Title: Une jeunesse Allemande

AWARDS

Best first film award / Lima independiente film festival (Peru)

Best documentary / Bratislava international film festival

Prix SCAM du jury international / Cinéma du réel (Paris)

Prix du film suisse le plus innovant / Visions du réel (Nyon)

Prix spécial du jury / Yerevan golden apricot film festival

Prix de la presse / L'Alternativa (Barcelone)

Audience Award / Valdivia international film festival

Special Mention of the Jury / BAFICI

Special Mention of the Jury / DocAviv (Tel-Aviv)

Special Mention of the Jury / Guanajuato international film festival

Special Mention of the Fipresci Jury / Festival cinematografico internacional del

Uruguay (Montevideo)

Special Mention / Les rendez-vous de l'histoire (Blois)

Nominated for the best documentary / Césars 2016

Nominated for the best historical movie / Focal 2016

OFFICIAL SELECTION

Berlin International Film Festival / Opening Of The Panorama Section

San Francisco Film Festival / Documentary Competition

Milano Film Festival / International Competition

Indielisboa / International Competition

San Sebastian Film Festival / Zabaltegi Section

ViennaleJihlava International Documentary Festival

Cinéma Du Réel / Paris

États Généraux Du Film Documentaire / Lussas

Visions Du Réel / Nyon

The rise and fall of a generation driven by revolution and rebellion.

A German Youth (Une Jeunesse Allemande) is a documentary entirely composed of archival images and sounds that retraces the history of the Red Army Faction, a radical left-wing group founded by Andreas Baader and Ulrike Meinhof in Germany during the 1960s and 1970s. Through historical footage, television broadcasts, and interviews from the time, the film examines both the movement itself and the visual culture that surrounded it. By reconstructing this turbulent period exclusively through existing media, Jean-Gabriel Périot invites viewers to reflect on the revolutionary fervor of that generation and to consider how its ideals and contradictions still resonate in contemporary society.