Saila - A film by Julia Ostertagsaila    credits    about j.o.    trailer    making of    mail/dvd    press   main
Written      directed      shot      edited by Julia Ostertag      2006 - 2008      95 min.


  Weit hinter dem Auge der BetrachterIn, irgendwo zwischen Amygdala und Unterleib, lagert sich das filmische Werk Julia Ostertags an. Ihre frühen experimentellen Kurzfilme not that kind of girl und vor allem Sexjunkie, der 2006 auf dem Porn Film Festival Berlin im Kurzfilmwettbewerb Hetero ausgezeichnet wurde, stehen ohne Frage in der Tradition des Cinema of Transgression eines New York der 80er. - interview mit j.o im ikonenmagazin - april 2009    » more



  It`s probably the Berlin Punk film right now. - andreas michalke on berlin diy hc punk    » more



  Julia Ostertag is an underground filmmaker from Berlin on a mission to challenge representations of female characters in film, particularly those that are violent and sexualised. Coming from an art school background and finding her early influences in the cinema of transgression, she is a filmmaker whose work elicits a love or hate reaction from the audience. She delights in provocation, and her first feature Saila is further proof of this. - siouxzi mernagh on electricsheepmagazine     » more



  While "Saila" can be viewed as taking place in the undisclosed future or parallel universe, the film is perhaps better read as reflections of the present recreated in an imagined dystopia. This is not only an attempt to question the operational imperatives of the genre of film, "Saila" is also a visual thematic of social-economic critique. (...) Alienation, pervasive exploitation and value system still exist in this dystopia. The absolute necessity for the transformation of social relations in the present is vividly and emphatically demanded through the warning call of the refracted hell depicted as immediate experience by the characters of "Saila". - datacide    » more



  " What does Armageddon mean to an anarchist ?
The average person would regress to animal survival instincts, but the subjects of Saila are already there, and accept nuclear holocaust as an inevitable turn of events. A fascinating glimpse into the violent subculture of those who live off the grid, disturbingly framed as a microcosm for society at large. The doomsday vision is unique in it's presentation from the perspective of the elements of society most apathetic and least affected by it, from a generation in which nihilism already pervades. Saila seems to suggest a deeper, darker truth: apocalypse may already be upon us."
andy gately, austin underground film festival



  Ostertag´s debut fictional feature is a puzzling film, but in a good way. While it’s easy to lay out a narrative that invites interpretation, just because a director is asking for that, doesn’t mean an audience is going to want to bother figuring things out. Saila succeeds for two reasons. One is that the post-industrial landscape that Ostertag has captured is so ugly and devoid of life that there’s an utterly grimy, otherworldly charm to them. Secondly, the film succeeds because Saila herself is a very compelling figure. - mike everleth on badlit    » more



  Subculture and emotional delusion:
Julia Ostertag and Sexuality - Visual atmospheres in vacant factories outside Berlin:
Sex, death, and power games. With her recent film SAILA (2008), director Julia Ostertag presents kind of an erotic experimental film shot in squatter and punk milieu.  » more

  Subkultur und emotionaler Wahn:
Julia Ostertag und das Sexuelle - Visuelle Stimmungs-Sphären in leer stehenden Fabrikhallen ausserhalb Berlins:
Sex, Tod und Machtspiele. Die Regisseurin Julia Ostertag hat mit ihrem neuesten Film SAILA (2008) eine Art von erotischem Experimentalfilm im Hausbesetzer und Punk Milieu gedreht. - splatting image 12/08 lenzl4



  Interview mit dem Magazin " Stadtkind Hannover " :

Wie bist du auf die Idee zu deinem Film gekommen?"

Ich wollte eine sexuell aktive, gewalttätige und mysteriöse Frauengestalt entwerfen. Es sollte allerdings keine moralischen Rechtfertigung oder Erklärung für ihr Verhalten geben. Also musste ich sie in einer gesetzlosen Zone ansiedeln, einer Art Paralleluniversum, in dem alles möglich ist. Dafür boten sich diese seltsamen Ost-Architekturen an, die man noch bis vor kurzem leicht finden konnte, sobald man sich mehr als 10km vom Zentrum Berlins entfernt ....    » more