A young woman follows her lover to a peninsula in the Baltic Sea. She is carrying his child unbeknownst to him. After her arrival, she realizes that her affair is a farce and she must now deal with the reality of her body. A film about the fragility of relationships, Hel takes a look into the life changing consequences of love and conception.

• Running Time: 11 minutes
• Languages: English, German, French, Polish
• Country: Germany/Poland/Switzerland
• Year: 2007
• © Kölner Filmhaus/Filmspring www.filmspring.eu  

Hel was developed on an online forum produced by the Kölner Filmhaus and Focal, an audio-video training institute in Switzerland.  Two German, one Canadian (me!) and three Swiss directors prepared the script online and communicated for four months about the casting, treatment, and dramaturgy of the film. In October 2005, we met for three weeks on the Polish peninsula of Hel and together with Slawomir Idziak, five cameramen, and a small production team, produced the film. Each director then had 6-8 months to edit his or her interpretation of Hel. Although I am a Canadian director, Slawomir Idziak, nevertheless allowed me to participate in this European workshop, for which I am very grateful.

• Premiere, Solothurner Filmtage, Switzerland 2006
• KAN Film Festival, Poland 2006
• Krakow Film Festival, Poland 2007