Hanau (dpa / lhe) – The city of Hanau and the victims’ families reacted with outrage to a film project by director Uwe Boll on the racially motivated attack that left nine dead a good year ago. “All of us – the families of the victims, the magistrate as well as the head of the city council and the parliamentary groups – urge you to stop preparations immediately and to refrain from shooting to make this film,” said an open letter to Boll the city of Hanau published on Friday. In addition to the families of the victims, it was signed by Hanau’s mayor, Claus Kaminsky (SPD), among others. The “Bild” newspaper had previously reported on the film project.
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Boll defended the plan on Friday evening. He is on the side of the victims and wants to contribute to the required clarification of the events, said the director of the German press agency. It is understandable if the topic is emotionally stressful. He also believes “that the film should not necessarily be viewed by the victims’ families,” said Boll. However, the attack once again made clear the dangers of growing right-wing extremism and increasing conspiracy theories, which is why it is important to take up the issue. The film has already been shot and should be finished in a few months.
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Just over a year ago, a 43-year-old German shot nine people for racist motives in the city in the Rhine-Main area, before he presumably killed his mother and ultimately himself. The act had caused horror nationwide. Federal President Frank-Walter Steinmeier and Hesse’s Prime Minister Volker Bouffier (CDU) took part in a memorial event on the anniversary of the crime on February 19.
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A Hanau city spokeswoman said that Boll had not previously contacted the city about the film project. The victims’ families and associations also learned about it from the press, the letter said. Boll explained that he had contacted the Ferhat Unvar education initiative, but received a signal from there that it was refraining from the project. Unvar was one of the victims of the attack; his mother founded the education initiative.
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City and victims’ families declared in the open letter that the attack on February 19, 2020 had torn many wounds? in the families affected, in all of urban society. “The city has not been the same since then and we are all doing our best to deal with events appropriately. It is beyond our imagination what state of mind is necessary to film the violent death of nine fellow human beings in a way that is after yours own words is too harsh for the public broadcasters “, so the city and the relatives in the letter with a view to a quote Bolls in the” picture “.
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If the project were to be implemented, they asked Boll to “respect the personal rights of relatives, their sense of piety and the continued human dignity of the deceased”. Otherwise, legal action has been announced.
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© dpa-infocom, dpa: 210312-99-800720 / 2
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