Wholetrain Movie

WHOLETRAIN-DVD & SOUNDTRACK AVAILABLE NOW (Order at: http://wholetrain.com/) Subtitles: English, Spanish, French, Portuguese, Italian, Turkish, Greek, Russian, Japanese, Korean, Indonesian, Chinese For bookings & screenings contact: [email protected]

Description

With WHOLETRAIN writer/director FLORIAN GAAG tells the story of a crew of four “writers” – David, Tino, Elyas und Achim – who observe the hierarchies, the values, the rules and the codes of the graffiti scene. Night after night they make off for the subway stations of the city, intent on leaving opulent images behind. But as another crew appears on the scene, and the four feel challenged, a creative battle ensues, one that will change the lives of these young people for ever.
We are confronted with life taken to the limit. Constantly on the edge of legality. Always on the run from the law. Urban space must be reclaimed. Friends are made and lost. Unbridled creativity and doing things for the sheer love of it are watchwords too.

WHOLETRAIN is an emotionally gripping drama that explores the secret universe of the graffiti scene. The protagonists exist in a breathless state, suspended somewhere between two worlds: their day to day life, and their existence within the crew. FLORIAN GAAG manages to recount a tale coloured by tension and aggression. The result is a many-sided portrait of characters whose world has never been documented in this way before. Their subculture remains authentic and realistic. Edgy editing and grandiloquent camerawork, a pulsating soundtrack and an excellent ensemble of actors, make WHOLETRAIN a film experience not to be missed.

For the artwork in WHOLETRAIN FLORIAN GAAG collaborated with internationally renowned graffiti artists NEON, WON ABC, CEMNOZ, PURE TFP and CIEL.

The ORIGINAL SOUNDTRACK was produced by FLORIAN GAAG aka AERO ONE, who worked with legendary figures like Hip Hop greats KRS-ONE, FREDDIE FOXXX, O.C., PLANET ASIA, AFU-RA, GRAND AGENT, TAME ONE, AKROBATIK, REEF THE LOST CAUZE and EL DA SENSEI.


QUOTES

KRS-ONE :
„Florian Gaag has an excellent movie out. I am really proud to be part of that project. „Wholetrain“ is the dopest graffiti movie ever. I would put „Wholetrain“ next to the great movies, right up next to „Style Wars“. I thought that „Wholetrain“ really captured Hip Hop’s culture.“

CHARLIE AHEARN (director of „WILD STYLE“)
„I saw „Wholetrain“ at S.O.B.’s in New York, It was a great experience watching it. There was a tremendous amount of character development, interesting dialogue and a lot of story in it.
It took real vision to make that world come alive like that. „Wholetrain" is an impressive piece of work . It´s the only Graffiti-Movie that can follow in the footsteps of „Wild Style.“

HENRY CHALFANT (author and photographer of „SUBWAY ART“, co-producer of „STYLE WARS“)
„Wholetrain“ exhibits the human dimensions of Graffiti-Writing. The social conflict between the protagonists is fascinating and allows one to take a look at the writers´real lives, their real characters, and real problems.
„Wholetrain“ is a great film that not only reflects writing culture but also leaves room to portray authentically the writers´ social reality.“

KET (graffiti-writer NYC):
„I loved the movie. I thought that „Wholetrain“ represented the scene the best - ever.
It really captured what writers go through and their struggles; they were humanized, they weren’t caricatures. I appreciate that.
I remember that it made me feel that I was there with those guys, living with those guys. It took me back to a time when I was living the way those kids were living. I thought it was very authentic in that sense.“

AWARDS

3 Grimme Awards - Screenplay / Direction: Florian Gaag, Camera: Christian Rein, Editing: Kai Schröter

Berlin International Film Festival – Special Mention “Dialogue En Perspective”

Prenominations for the German Fim Awards in six categories (Best Film, Best Editing, Best Set Design, Best Score, Best Sound Design, Best Costume Design)

Urban World Vibe Fim Festival New York – Best Narrative Feature Film

Kiev International Film Festival Molodist – Best Feature Film & Audience Award

Cologne Conference – Best Feature Film

Sarajevo International Film Festival – Best Youth Film

Exground International Film Festival – Best Youth Film

Boston International Film Festival – Best Narrative Feature Film

HipHop Odyssey International Film Festival New York – Best Narrative Feature Film

Starter Film Award – City of Munich


PRESS

“This film simply hits you in the face, and you can’t get it out of your eyes, your ears, and your senses.” ULYSSES

„A gripping drama with an outstanding cast. The most authentic German movie in a long time.“ ROLLING STONE MAGAZINE

“A febrile movie. A moving drama and homage to youth.” SÜDDEUTSCHE ZEITUNG

“Florian Gaag´s debut feature film offers a fascinating insider view of a subculture that operates deliberately in the dark. Gaag displays a remarkable talent as a director with an excellent feeling for tempo and atmosphere.” DER SPIEGEL / KulturSPIEGEL

“Florian Gaag has shot a small film about sprayers and made a huge portrait on the Ninjas of this subculture. An excellent cinematic debut.” SPIEGEL ONLINE

“Even the minor roles were well cast in a film that managed to convince in every detail, great fun indeed.” TAZ

“A rough and ready drama about rebellion, self-fulfillment and respect.” FOCUS

“A grandiloquent love affair with the graffiti scene.”
“A wild and uncompromising film.”
“These characters are so real, real like we hardly ever see them in the cinema.”
“A phenomenal debut.” EPD FILM

“The film is as fast as a speeding subway train.” DIE WELT

“Fast moving, believable, great sense of humor and still with a sense of depth. And it is the music by Florian Gaag that makes for cohesive editing and makes the film into a captivating and exciting story.” DE:BUG

“Exact, sensitive and without cliches.” BERLINER ZEITUNG

“A furious debut film, one that adapts the aesthetic of graffiti in a clever way and knows just how to capture it in cinematic terms.”
“ Wholetrain, with its exact symbiosis of staccato editing, hiphop sound design and racy plot, remains one of the best films of the year.” FILM-DIENST

“Authentic, fast-paced and abrasive...”Wholetrain” remains the most convincing film in this section” (Berlin International Film Festival / Perspektive Deutsches Kino) 3 SAT KULTURZEIT

A strong film, strong in expression and a symphony of individuality, the full spectrum of life in the city in all its colours.” DIE PRESSE


FILM FESTIVALS 2006 / 2007 / 2008 / 2009:

BANFF World Television Festival, Banff, Canada, June 2009

Festival Augenblick, Strasbourg, France, March / April 2009

Best of Input Ghana 2009, Accra, Africa, March 2009

Les Enfants dé Cinema, Charleville Mezieres, France, February 2009

Scanorama 2008, Vilnius - Kaunas - Klaipeda, Lithuania, November 2008

Best of Input Poland 2008, Warsaw, Poland, October 2008

Best of Input Brazil 2008, Porto Alegre, Brazil, October 2008

Input 2008, Johannesburg, South Africa, May 2008

Bursa International Silk Road Film Festival (in competition), Bursa, Turkey, December 2007

Asheville Film Festival, Asheville, NC, USA, November 2007

Sao Paulo International Film Festival, Sao Paulo, Brazil, October 2007

Kiev International Film Festival Molodist (in competition) Kiew, Ukraine, October 2007

Indie World Film Festival Brazil, Belo Horizonte, Brazil, October 2007

New Orleans Film Festival, New Orleans, Louisiana, USA, October 2007

Ciné-Jeune de lÁisne International Film Festival (in competition), St-Quentin, France, October 2007

Black Filmmaker Magazine International Film Festival, London, UK, September 2007

HipHop Odyssey International Film Festival (“Best Narrative Feature”), New York, NY, June 2007

Boston International Film Festival (“Best Narrative Feature”), Boston, MA, June 2007

Zlin International Film Festival for Children and Youth (in competition), Zlin, Czech Republic, May 2007

Jeonju International Film Festival, Jeonju, South-Korea, May 2007

Philadelphia International Film Festival, Philadelphia, PA, USA, April 2007

RiverRun International Film Festival Winston-Salem, NC, USA, April 2007

WorldFest Houston International Film Festival (“Silver Remi Award“) Houston, TX, USA, April 2007

Crossing Europe Film Festival, Linz, Austria, April 2007

Bradford International Film Festival, Bradford, United Kingdom, March 2007

Festival of New Films from Germany and Austria and Switzerland, Washington DC, USA, February 2007

Berlin & Beyond Film Festival, San Francisco, U S A, February 2007

Gijon International Film Festival, Gijon, Spain, December 2006

International Film Weekend Würzburg (“2nd Audience Award“), Würzburg, Germany, November 2006

Camerimage International Film Festival (nominated for “Best European Feature Film“), Lodz, Poland, November 2006

Tallinn Black Nights Film Festival, Tallinn, Estonia, November 2006

Exground Film Fest (“Best Narrative Feature for a Young Audience“), Wiesbaden, Germany, November 2006

Cologne Conference, (“Best Narrative Feature“), Cologne, Germany, October 2006

Black Soil International Hip Hop Film Festival, Amsterdam & Rotterdam, Netherlands, October 2006

Helsinki International Film Festivasl, Helsinki, Finland, September 2006

Sarajevo International Film Festival (“Best Narrative Feature for a Young Audience“), Sarajevo, Bosnia and Herzegovina, August 2006

Durban International Film Festival, Durban, South Africa, June 2006

Urban World Vibe Film Festival (“Best Narrative Feature“), New York, U S A, June 2006

Lola Film Festival of Films (nominated for the “German Film Award“ - WHOLETRAIN was preselected in the categories „Best Film“, „Best Editing“, „Best Art Direction“, “Best Music“, „Best Sound Design“, „Best Costume Design“), Germany, April / May 2006

Salerno International Film Festival (in competition), Salerno, Italy. April 2006

Berlin International Film Festival (Special Mention "Dialogue En Perspective") Berlin, Germany, February 2006