ORF III

60 years of the Austrian State Treaty (1955 - 2015). Robert Dornhelm and Gabriele Flossmann search for the current state of the "Austrian soul" in the Second Republic, our free and neutral Austria.

A CELEBRATION OF DISNEY CLASSICS - FEATURING ALAN MENKEN In 1989, THE LITTLE MERMAID marked Disney’s glorious return to the genre of the grand fairy tale musical. Music was more important than ever for these big screen masterpieces, breathing life into the skillfully animated fairy tale worlds. One name shaped the films of the so-called "Golden 90s" and beyond like no other: Alan Menken. Besides THE LITTLE MERMAID, the composer wrote scores and songs for the modern Disney classics BEAUTY AND THE BEAST, ALADDIN, POCAHONTAS, THE HUNCHBACK OF NOTRE DAME and many more and lend the Disney's dream worlds their unmistakable sound.

During his lifetime, he commanded the burning of his complete stock of works, letters and writings after his passing away. Fortunately, his publisher and friend didn't carry out his wish and has in this way saved a crucial piece of world literature. But who really was the graduate lawyer Franz Kafka? The TV documentary reveals that his narratives and novels were not as incomprehensible as many might claim. Several text passages are cinematically implemented and, by doing so, easier to understand. The documentary proceeds towards Kafka's stages of life. To Prague, obviously. To Vienna and to the Baltic Sea, where he eventually found his last love. Going further into the question why he never seemed to come to fulfillment with anyone, even though he was popular among women. Theatre and opera performances, «The Trial» at the Salzburg Festival complete the film as well as investigations at the «Oxford Research Centre», which targets Kafka in its studies.

In 1731, nineteen "vampires" were burned at the stake near Olomouc, including seven children. In Banat, a part of present-day Serbia, reports of "people drained of blood" became more frequent. Empress Maria Theresa wanted to put an end to the goings-on and commissioned her personal physician Gerard van Swieten to shed light on the matter.

The forest is an inexhaustible reservoir of life force – no one knows this better than the so-called resin tappers, the forest workers who extract resin from the trees. Black pine, in particular, is considered especially productive in its later years. In Hernstein, the old tradition of resin tapping has been preserved. The resin from here is considered among the best in the world and is used, among other things, to make ointments. Director Wolfgang Niedermair accompanied the people here and documented their lives in harmony with nature. He portrays a hard but also fulfilling profession, one that is practiced by only a few today.

Whether in the illegal occupation of Crimea and eastern Ukraine, in verbal exchanges with the "West," or in the struggle to maintain power at home, Kremlin chief Vladimir Putin repeatedly mobilizes and exploits moments from 1,000 years of Russian history to justify controversial policies. He presents himself as a statesman committed to reviving the former glory and greatness of the Russian and Soviet empires. Whether borrowing from the Tsarist era or the Soviet era, his playing on the historical keyboard earns him considerable support at home. "Putin and the Power of History" examines events, figures, and turning points in Russia's past to which Putin refers. Renowned experts comment, such as Putin's "chief historian," Molotov's grandson Vyacheslav Nikonov, and Nikolai Svanidze, a supporter of Gorbachev's policies.

The documentary explores the ailing side of the once-powerful Habsburg dynasty and recounts some curious prescriptions, such as hemp cigarettes for asthma and cocaine suppositories for insomnia. A look at medical standards at the beginning of the 19th century also makes it clear that good basic medical care was far from accessible to all sections of the population.