Life and Other Problems
What is life? This film is a nuanced and playful philosophical reflection on that question. The narrative thread concerns Marius, a young giraffe in a Danish zoo whose planned euthanasia sparked global outrage a decade ago.
Festival IDFA
Location Rabozaal
Run time 102 minutes
Genre Film
Dutch premiere
About Life and Other Problems
News about the young giraffe Marius made a big splash about 10 years ago. The Danish zoo where he lived was planning to euthanize him because it considered him redundant for its reproduction program. Marius’s predicament triggered outrage worldwide, not least among American conservatives. These events raised existential questions for filmmaker Max Kestner. With a contagious sense of curiosity, he embarks on a search for answers. Some of the scientists he interviews are taken aback by his freewheeling questions.
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Their responses prompt new questions, and Kestner continues his philosophical quest as developments also continue to take place in the saga of Marius the giraffe. At the zoo, staff are preparing to euthanize Marius. As the outcry continues and scenes of agitated FOX presenters are beamed around the world, the director of the zoo refuses to bow to blackmail—including when the Swedish owner of a dubious zoo offers to take in Marius.
About IDFA
IDFA strives to strengthen the international documentary climate by focusing more than ever on documentary film as an art form. This focus includes documentary films with an original visual language or structure, films that show lesser-known cultures or are filmed from a non-Western perspective, and interactive or immersive documentaries that innovate the field.