Lars von Trier

French and Polish students on sale in Juliette Binoche film 'Elles'

'They' tells the story of a journalist dealing with two young students who are forced to prostitute themselves to pay for their studies. The journalist becomes fascinated by the two girls' stories to the point of damaging her research. The topic isn’t new, but the plot is original, says one Italian reviewer

by Jacopo Franchi @ // 15/02/12

lars von trier, film, france, students, cinema, prostitution, culture

Von Trier, Bier, Mikkelsen: Denmark cleans up at European Film Awards 2011

On 4 December the 24th edition of the European film academy’s (EFA) annual film awards gave the top prizes to Melancholia and The King’s Speech, as well as an honorary award for Mads Mikkelsen

by Christiane Lötsch @ // 12/12/11

lars von trier, berlin, denmark, cinema, culture, film festival

Europa Melancholia

Depression, fears, insecurity – they are increasingly creeping into all areas of life, yet stay some of the biggest taboos of our generation. They can be our entertainment and part of our entourage – we’ll often pay to watch these themes being depicted on the big screen or discuss how it might have affected someone in our circle of friends or colleagues. But we can also suffer from a real burnout syndrome at work or after leaving our erasmus experiences abroad behind. So when does sadness or melancholy transform into real depression? Nearly 40% of Europeans suffer from psychological disorders, says one of the newest pan-European studies on the issue, which we have taken as inspiration for this week’s special edition. Are our hectic ‘lives on the edge’ or too individualistic lifestyles the reason? Failing to take the psyche seriously in Europe is also the question we’ll ask next week during our collaborative broadcast ‘Europa plus’, which we run weekly together with the German TV channel ZDF - if you have something to say, visit our theme page www.cafebabel.co.uk/europaplus

• Read the special edition Europa Melancholia
• One third of Europeans suffer from mental illness: really?
• ‘Nos plusieurs’: autistic theatre stars meet Indian epic in French documentary
• Post-Erasmus syndrome: SOS distress
• Depression: ‘alcohol abuse is far more common in eastern and northern Europe’
• Brussels: Spanish expat on depression taboo
• Cinema psyche: the enemy is within us