ABELONE FILMS presents the trailer for the short film FORGIVENESS, a passion project in cooperation with Director Felix Julian Koch, brought to life together with an amazing crew both behind and in front of the camera. The film is featured at festivals worldwide at the moment and has just won Silver at the Young Director Award (YDA) following nominations in three categories.

“We are super happy to announce the wonderful achievement of being shortlisted in three categories at YDA in Cannes. Recognition in the categories ‘Changing the World Frame by Frame,’ ‘Passion Project,’ and ‘Short Film up to 10 Minutes’ is a testament to the hard work and dedication of everyone involved; the effort and passion put into the project, the challenging film production in the Cape Flats, the community, and the story it tells. We’re looking forward to shining a light on a side of Cape Town that hasn’t been seen all too often,” says ABELONE FILMS.

With his film FORGIVENESS, Director Felix Julian Koch, who skillfully captures the breadth and depth of human emotion in his stories, has brought the touching journey of a South African man from a harsh background, marked by violence and imprisonment, to the silver screen. The film explores the subject of disconnection in modern society, highlighting how crucial forgiveness is for personal and emotional growth.

Shot locally in the Cape Flats – a community living in the shadows of the vibrant Mother City often overlooked by society – the film shows an area known to many only from the window of a car passing by on the highway. A veil of anonymity behind which a harsh reality lies hidden. A reality marked by gang activity and severe living conditions.

Besides filming, numerous photos were shot and sounds were recorded – soon to be displayed in a series of exhibitions across Germany and South Africa.

Felix Julian Koch is an award-winning director whose work embodies the essence of modern cinematography and profound storytelling. At an early age, his passion for telling stories already found its perfect canvas in motion pictures. His career began with directing, producing, and writing across various formats, from commercials and music videos to documentaries and short films. Notably, his talent caught the eye of the esteemed German ad agency Jung von Matt, where he worked as a creative producer and in-house director. Today, he lives in Hamburg, Germany and Cape Town, SA, working as an independent director and photographer on the global stage. His portfolio boasts collaborations with renowned brands such as Montblanc, Mercedes-Benz, O2, and BMW, as well as names including Roger Federer, Hugh Jackman, Victoria Swarovski, Andre Schürrle or Toni Kroos.


CREDITS
Director: Felix Julian Koch
Director of Photography: Rory O’Grady
Starring: Deverol Peters, Sergio Luitjies, Aunty Maggie, Johny van Wyk, June van Merch
Editor: Yannis Panther
Executive Producer: Søren Haxholm & Inga Schlüter c/o ABELONE FILMS
Producer SA: Michelle Geeringh
Unit Manager: Chris Cloete
Written by: Lisa Palos and Felix Julian Koch
1st AC: Damien Walsh
Loader: Sam Maritz
Gaffer: Jean Pierre du Preez
Grip: Alex Kauffenstein & Itumeleng Mdodana
Location Fixer: Lee Cloete
Security: Johny Van Wyk
Editor: Yannis Panther
Sound Design: Yannis Panther & Nick Nowottny
Sound Mix: Nick Nowottny
Digital Colorist: Dominic Phipps
Title, Design & Poster: Michael Mandrup

See further work by Felix via abelone.rocks/felix-julian-koch and more projects by ABELONE here abelone.rocks/.
04.07.2024 show complete article

ABELONE FILMS has their production for MERCEDES-BENZ EQE SUV PRESENTED BY AMANDA STRETTON (Director’s Cut) for the agency Antoni Berlin and Team X in store for us here on GoSee.News.

In the commercial, we meet meet Amanda Stretton – a leading British UK’s female motorsport, classic car and automotive TV broadcaster as well as champion racing car driver – who presents the all-electric Mercedes-Benz EQE SUV on the streets of Barcelona. Particularly impressive: experiencing Dolby Atmos® first-hand in the new EQE SUV – one of the many features of the vehicle to be showcased.

It was directed by Felix Julian Koch – known for bringing to life compelling narratives in his commercials, capturing the breadth and depth of human emotions in each frame. DOP was Maximilian Hillmer.

The film was shot on location over the course of four days as well as in a loft studio furnished for the shoot. The result, alongside a 20-minute main film, were a number of further assets for use online, i.e., social media….

Abelone Films is a Hamburg-based creative film production company which represents a number of directors and multidisciplinary talent and photographers : “We direct, produce and edit a wide range of high-quality moving images for commercials and branded content campaigns.”

Their forte is a unique style of storytelling paired with professional international production services – to make brands come alive with moving images by connecting professionals while integrating classic and new media expertise for each project : “We believe in the force of our inimitable and ever-growing network which enables us to provide additional value alongside the finest quality as well as personal, transparent and cost-effective production processes.”


CREDITS
Client: Mercedes-Benz AG
Agency: antoni garage / team x worldwide
Executive Creative Director: Gün Aydemir
Creative Director: Augusto Santos
Art Director: Wim Wolfram
Copy: Viktoria Marie Sept
Account Manager: Lena Cremers
Script Development: Massimiliano Laier
Creative Producers: Sergii Eistenstadt, Marjorie Jorrot
Director: Felix Julian Koch
DP: Maximilian Hillmer
Talent: Amanda Stretton
Production: Abelone Films
Executive Producers: Søren Haxholm, Inga Schlüter
Service Production: Falcagram
Executive Producer: Ignasi Vargas Surroca
Producer: Jack Daniel-Dempsey
Prod. Assistant: Maria Badia
Location Manager: Aleix Marin
1st AD: Ainara Trigueros
2nd Unit DP: Bernat Eguiluz
1st AC: Adrian Navas
Gaffer: Oscar Andreo
& his lighting crews Zeferino Light and Blacklightcrew
Key Grip: Jordi Hidalgo
Art Director: Laura Jauregui
Styling: Stephanie Wuestemannn
Drone incl. FPV: Topshot Drone
Car Care: Car Pro Films
Post Production: Abelone Films
Post Supervisor Abelone: Philipp Ludwig
Edit: Yannis Panther
Edit SoMe: Philipp Ludwig

Grading: Johannes Hilser, Difference Berlin
Colorist DC: Soenke Heuer, Infected Connected
Music DC: Felix Julian Koch
Sound Design: Yannis Panther
Sound Mix: Tom Sue
Photographer & BTS: Jan Fischer
 
06.06.2024 show complete article

We’ll make it short: The exhibitors, the location, the weather… it was simply perfect. It was particularly nice to see how UPDATE is also becoming more and more popular among art and creative directors as well as direct clients. We’re already looking forward to next year and have gathered a few example quotes for you. And before we forget: Huge thanks to the AFTER-WORK sponsors Severin Wendeler, Abelone Films, Big Shrimp, Peak Productions, Bubig, NeubauerSchwarz, Upfront and Rockenfeller & Göbels. We love teamwork!

“I wanted to thank you sincerely for the invitation to the GoSeeAwards, your warm welcome and the quality of the event. It is always a real pleasure to meet the agents and discover new talent.” Nathalie Maudet, Directrice Achat d’Art / Head of Art Buying, Publicis Conseil, Leo Burnett, Saatchi & Saatchi, Marcel, Publicis Sapient.

“I would like to thank you very much once more for inviting me to Update. The event was really amazing, and I met so many new agencies. There were a lot of agents there that I have already worked with, and I was able to meet them in person through the event. I am already in contact with many of them regarding their work and our magazine planning. At events like this, I always realize that for me, there is only one job: Photo Editor. Photographers/videographers/agents/creatives are simply very special people.” Andrea Vollmer-Hess | Visual Editor, VOGUE Germany, Condé Nast Germany.

“We have many networking events in our hotel – but that everyone is busy networking intensively everywhere you look all day long, like now at UPDATE – that was quite new for all of us here at the hotel.” Laura Pohl, Event Sales Executive, Telegraphenamt.

“I would like to thank you so much again for the beautiful UPDATE last week! I had a lot of fun and would like to congratulate you on this truly amazing event!” Jennifer Parry, Director Creation, Print Production & Brand, MADELEINE Mode GmbH.

“I really, really liked the whole event. The location was excellent, the exhibitors were very diverse, and I found the entire atmosphere and all the conversations so inspiring.” Garnet Matthiesen, Creative Production | Leitung Art Buying, Grabarz & Partner.

“It was so nice to be there with you again. The location was really beautiful, and the resulting size of the trade fair, too. For me its not so much about discovering new talent but more about connecting and updating. For my Junior, it had everything. She found the mix of national and international exhibitors very good and quite inspiring,” Alice Feja Team Lead Art Production, ACCENTURE SONG.

“Thank you so much for the great trade fair!!! We have received mind-blowing feedback from the visitors. MEGA!!!!!!” Marco Hülsebus ARTISTSPOOL & Yilmaz Aktepe, Editor-in-Chief – Best Fashion / Member of the Editorship – Men’s Health / Fashion Director Men’s Health & Women’s Health.

“A colorful bouquet of inspiration, an amazing location and the best atmosphere among exhibitors and visitors. What I also thought was great, of course, were the two collectives. I found both concepts, the ‘political’ statement of Herspective and the Artistspool, very interesting. Looking forward to 2024.” Birgit Meinhof, Senior Art Buyer, CarlNann GmbH.

“A really good and beautiful location, which really does something for the mood and the atmosphere (almost the best location for Update since 2015, as far as I can say) – good placement and number of exhibitors. With regard to so many photographers attending, well, I’m not too sure… On one hand: It is really great to see everyone, have the opportunity to talk or get to know everyone in person! On the other: You have less time to look at portfolios and talk to agents/production companies etc. yourself. The day is really too short!” Juliane Siedler, Senior Art Buyer, Scholz & Friends.

“For me, the organization and scale of UPDATE were very appealing. I met a lot of people I know there and also made new contacts. The two halls were not too full, and you had time to look at the portfolios of the individual representations and get into a conversation with the attending photographers.” Christian Klein, Creative Lead Brand & Campaigns TERRITORY Integrated & Digital Creative Director.

‘The day was simply perfect! And our art directors were just as thrilled.” Karen Schwarzer, Head of Art Buying, Philipp und Keuntje.
01.06.2023 show complete article