Biography
Felix Hassenfratz, born in 1981 in Heilbronn, worked as a freelance author after high school and civilian service. In 2004 he began studying directing at the Internationale Filmschule Köln. He gained practical experience as a set photographer and assistant director, including Romuald Karmakar's "Between the Devil and the Wide Blue Sea" (2005) and "Hamburger Lektionen" (2006). In addition, he realized several award-winning short films during his studies. His graduation film "The Suspicion" (2007), about a small town baker suspected of murder, was based on a true story about which Hassenfratz had made the short documentary "Der Bäcker war's" the year before. "Der Verdacht" was presented at numerous international festivals and has won several awards, including the German Short Film Award for Best Feature Film, the Studio Hamburg Newcomer Award for Best Screenplay and the Panther Award of the International Film University Festival Munich (ex aequo mit " On the track" by Reto Caffi).
After graduation, Hassenfratz worked as a freelance director for various TV formats, including the children and youth programme. His four-part documentary "Schnitzeljagd im Heiligen Land" (2010) for the broadcaster Ki.Ka, in which children explore various religions, was awarded the Grimme Special Prize for Children and Youth Programmes. Other films directed by him are the short film "Nachtgedanken - Das andere Leben" (2011) as well as several episodes of the TV documentary series "Der Haustier-Check" (2016).
At the Berlinale in 2018, Felix Hassenfratz's first feature-length film celebrated its premiere: "Verlorene" a complex drama about two sisters and a dark family secret, set in the German province, received much acclaim in the festival's Perspektive Deutsches Kino section.