FABIAN: GOING TO THE DOGS

2021
176’
Colour
Germany

Berlin, 1931. Jakob Fabian works in the advertising department of a cigarette factory during the day and drifts through bars, brothels and artist studios with his wealthy friend, Labude, at night. When Fabian gets to know the self-confident Cornelia, he manages to shed his pessimistic mindset for a brief moment. He falls in love. But then he, too, falls victim to the great wave of layoffs, while Cornelia makes a career as an actress thanks to her boss and admirer. An arrangement that Fabian finds difficult to come to terms with. But it’s not just his world that is falling apart…

She looked at him with a serious expression. “I am no angel, sir. We live in bad times for angels. What are we to do? When we fall for a man, we give ourselves up to him. We cut ourselves off from all there was before, and we go to him. Here I am, we say, with a friendly smile. Yes, here you are, he says, and scratches the back of his head. Lord above, he thinks, now I’m lumbered with her. With a light heart, we give him all we have. And he curses. Our gifts irritate him. At first, he curses softly. Later, he curses out loud. And we’re left more alone than ever before. I’m twenty-five years old, and I’ve been left by two men. Like an umbrella you deliberately leave behind somewhere. Do you mind my speaking so frankly?” Dominik Graf

Dominik Graf (Munich, 1952) graduated from Munich Film and TV Academy in 1980. In the course of his career as writer and director for TV and cinema, his films have garnered national and international prizes, including prestigious Lola and Grimme Awards. His credits include the The investigator series (1984), The Cat (1988), The Invincibles (1994), Hot in paradise (2003), The Beloved Sisters (2014), the 10-part series In the Face of Crime (2010), several episodes of the Police call 110 series. In 2010, a book of Graf’s essays on cinema was published.