2009 WJFF VISIONARY AWARD HONORING FILMMAKER MICHAEL VERHOEVEN 

Award presentation: Aviva Kempner, WJFF Founding Director, and Miriam Mörsel Nathan, WJFF Director Emeritus

Post-film discussion: Michael Verhoeven in conversation with Sharon Rivo, Co-Founder and Executive Director, National Center for Jewish Film

Reception: Hosted by His Excellency Dr. Klaus Scharioth, Ambassador of the Federal Republic of Germany




NASTY GIRL 
Das schreckliche Mädchen

Germany, 1990, video, feature
92 minutes
German with English subtitles
Director: Michael Verhoeven

Silver Bear, Berlin International Film Festival 1990
Best Foreign Language Film, Golden Globe Awards 1991
Best Foreign Language Film, New York Film Critics Circle Awards 1991
Nominated, Best Foreign Film, Academy Awards 1991

Screened as the Opening Night film of the first Washington Jewish Film Festival, December 1, 1990

Based on the true story of Ann Elisabeth Rosmus, this black comedy uses sharp wit and an intriguing post-modern style to explore the serious subject of Germany's Nazi past. A determined student, Sonja (Lena Stolze) sets out to write an essay about "My Town during the Third Reich." When the investigation begins to reveal her hometown's secret and shameful past, she is dubbed "the Nasty Girl," and outraged local citizens, intent on preserving their version of history, go to violent lengths to stop her from exposing the truth. (See page 6 for more information about filmmaker Michael Verhoeven and the WJFF Visionary Award)

CO-SPONSORED BY the Embassy of the Federal Republic of Germany, the Goethe-Institut Washington and the Courtyard Washington Embassy Row