My Desert Happiness: Running through the Sahara – the Marathon des Sables
They have never been so happy...
Our film team will accompany the ultra runner Claudia Odekerken chronicling her preparations for the Marathon des Sables which she will run in spring 2009. The core filming period will, of course, be the Marathon des Sables itself.
We narrate the film from different perspectives, from the subjective perspective of our runner and two fellow inhabitants of the tent, and from the perspective of the outside world.
How does Claudia experience the Marathon des Sables? What does she go through as she is exposed to the inhuman-seeming exertions and, at the same time, as she experiences the unique moments of happiness known only to ultra runners? The film will provide an insight into this experience.
Extreme running is also a drug that occasionally allows perception to blur. The desert also suggests such states of consciousness – the fata morgana is a known phenomenon. Strictly speaking, it is only a mirage but symbolically it also represents the inner states of the people who experience it. Therefore, we will create images that – blurred, glimmering, rich in contrast – correspond to the experience in the desert. It should not be forgotten that, in addition to all the funny and absurd-seeming aspects, there is also a deep seriousness inherent in the run.
Director: Gerhard Schick
Photographer: Saschko Frey
Sound: Robert F. Kellner
Editor: Oliver Held
Composer: Markus Aust
Production Manager: Wolfgang Kramer, Monika Mack, Jörg Kobel
Producer: Birgit Schulz
Commissioning Editor: Maren Niemeyer
Head of Departement: Ulrike Dotzer
