Catching Birds

Simon Maria
Kubiena

Simon Maria Kubiena, born in 1998, is based in Vienna and Berlin. He is studying directing at the Filmakademie Baden-Württemberg since 2019 and spent a semester in Paris at the La Fémis.
In 2023, he embarked on a master’s degree in screenwriting at the London Film School. His short film Blaues Rauschen was awarded at the 72nd Berlinale, followed by the co-directed short film Mise à nu which premiered at the 73rd Berlinale and was screened at the Sarajevo Film Festival, among others.
Simon is currently developing his first feature film The Flowering of a Chimera (WT

Lea Marie
Lembke

Lea Marie Lembke grew up in Berlin, where she studied philosophy and film at Freie Universität Berlin. She gained her first experiences in the film industry working as an assistant director, casting coordinator and production assistant for renowned film productions. At the same time she started directing her own short films and short-documentaries. For the winter semester 2019/20 she began studying directing at Filmakademie Baden-Württemberg. In 2021, she completed an exchange semester at Parisian film school La Fémis. 2019 INSULAR (10 min, fiction, Germany) 2019 FOMO (5 min, fiction, Germany) 2022 FAST NAH (15 min, fiction, Germany)

Sixteen-year-old wrestler Anouk wrestles with boys her age. Her focus on the sport is disrupted one day by a new member of the team.

This film screens as part of the programZlín Dog - Student Live-action Films 2.