Actor and cabaret artist Wolfgang Stumph shot another documentary in the summer. It’s the seventh since he discovered the genre with “Go Trabi Go Forever” in 2015 – and it may be his last. “It’s about sticking together,” said the 76-year-old of the German Press Agency in Dresden. Stories are told of people who are committed to community and thus create cohesion: a man from Mühlhausen who has been dependent on a wheelchair since childhood who unites people with and without disabilities, an organ builder in Lusatia who continues a 150-year family tradition, a young mountain rescuer , who works with young people, or a jazz pianist who, together with like-minded people in the Altenburger Land, turned an old four-sided courtyard into a cultural center.
In view of the war in Europe, the climate crisis and the negative consequences of globalization, the most important thing is “that we finally understand that we have to learn and practice on a small scale to stick together and only then can we create something and tackle something bigger,” Stumph said, describing his concerns. “If not now, then when will we need the realization for the future that we can only exist in solidarity.”
The broadcast date of the film entitled “Keep Together” is no coincidence either: October 3rd, the day of German unity, at “prime time”, but again only on MDR. Only one of his previous documentaries made it into another third programme, although all of them have an inherent pan-German perspective. Stumph is convinced that West German viewers are also interested “because they have a relationship with the East German states or are curious about the people there”.
The penultimate documentary film “Unsere Elbe” was only shown on NDR thanks to what Stumph says was “a feat that missed the MDR”. During a talk show, the busy artist had spoken to the director and convinced him that he, as ZDF detective inspector, was investigating “Stubbe” in Hamburg and Dresden, which connects the East and West rivers as a lifeline. “With hits, quizzes and thrillers, even repetitions are easier to accommodate in the third.”
Stumpi, as fans call him, is now putting an end to documentaries. “There will be a break and a new jump.” He first wants to explore how much he still wants to initiate and promote films – or just play if the attitude and morals of the role are right.
