Levante

In collaboration with XPOSED Queer Film Festival Berlin
Introduction with Merle Groneweg

Getty Abortions
Franzis Kabisch, Germany and Austria, 2023, 21 min

Sofia, the captain of a volleyball team from São Paolo who is full of queer energy, is fighting hard for a future as a professional player. However, an unwanted pregnancy suddenly threatens to destroy not only her dream of playing in the top league, but her entire future. In search of an abortion - which is a criminal offence in Brazil - she is targeted by a group of evangelical extremists who want to prevent it. With the collective support of her team who rise up to protect their fellow teammate and her single father, she tries everything to keep her dream alive.

Power Alley shows the very real obstacles to accessing abortion in Brazil. With her debut film, Lillah Halla also shows the uncompromising solidarity among socially marginalised women* who know that they must stand together against the oppression of a society governed by conservatism, classism and clericalism. (ML)

What do abortions look like? What kind of images shape our view on them? And where do these images come from? The desktop essay Getty Abortions examines how German and Austrian media illustrate the topic of abortion, browsing through stock photos, teen magazines and documents of a real abortion experience. It jumps from the early 2000s to the late 19th century, seeks out feminist knowledge and chats with fictional characters. But one question remains: Why does no one look into the camera? (MG)

Franzis Kabisch is a filmmaker, artistic researcher, and writer, based in Berlin and Vienna. She is a PhD candidate at the Academy of Fine Arts Vienna and a guest researcher at the Film University Babelsberg. Her artistic and scientific research is focused on the depictions of abortion in film and television, body politics and reproductive justice. For her short film „getty abortions", she has received numerous awards, among them the Golden Dove at DOK Leipzig, the Golden Key at Kasseler Dokfest or the Social Responsibility Award at Vienna Shorts. www.franziskabisch.net