Violently Happy
We live in a society that wants to keep us away from pain. Aspirin, Paracetamol, Ibuprofen and Voltaren.
Children´s playgrounds with rubber mats and bikes with cushioned seats. Comfort zones at any price.
Please, take my body, wrap it up in cotton and don´t touch it! This film is about people who want to be
touched and who are not afraid of experimenting with pain and violence. And, in doing so, have lots of sex.
Felix Ruckert, dancer and choreographer, meets Mara Morgen, urban sustainability worker not to play with
rubber mats but with whips, sex toys and sculptures of Buddha. Together with another choreographer,
Christine Borch, and psychologist Jana Scherle, these four strong reflective characters open the debate on
experimenting with Boundaries and Projections.
So what does Dance, Yoga and S&M have in common? The Schwelle 7, not a basement but Felix´s sun
bathed 500 m2 living room, an experimental place where real people play with real violence and unlived
fantasies are fulfilled. The concept of relationships and sexual patterns are disassembled and reassembled
in new forms and then messed up again... while dancing, meditating, at sex parties and in S&M sessions.
A seeking and smooth camera, close to the characters creates a very intimate and carnal film. Is the practice
of violence in a controlled and friendly space an evolution in our civilization?

Credits
Cast:
Felix Ruckert
Mara Morgen
Christine Borch
Jana Scherle
Script:
Paola Calvo
Camera:
Paola Calvo
Producer:
Andreas Hörl
Florian Schneider
Maren Lüthje
Editing:
Ginés Olivares
Music:
Christian Meyer
Film info
Direction:
Paola Calvo
Genre:
documentary
Country of production:
Germany
Production Company:
Deutsche Film- und Fernsehakademie Berlin
lüthje schneider hörl FILM in Koproduktion mit der dffb und dem rbb
Production:
2016
Shooting format:
Digital
Screening format:
16:9
Frame rate:
25 fps
Aspect ratio:
16:9
Sound format:
Dolby Surround und Stereo
Language:
German
Version:
OmU
Runtime:
92 minutes