HOLOFICTION Preview Screening & Panel Discussion in Pforzheim
October 3, 2026 – 7:00 PM
Schmuckmuseum Pforzheim im Reuchlinhaus, Pforzheim
Ahead of its German theatrical release on November 5, 2026, HOLOFICTION will be shown as a preview screening on Saturday, October 3, 2026, at the Schmuckmuseum Pforzheim in the Reuchlinhaus. Following the screening, director Michal Kosakowski will take part in a panel discussion and talk with the audience about the film.
The evening is presented by the Schmuckmuseum Pforzheim in cooperation with the Kommunales Kino Pforzheim as part of its “Koki vor Ort” series, and takes place within the framework of the Long Night of Democracy (Lange Nacht der Demokratie) around the Day of German Unity. Admission is free.
About the Film
HOLOFICTION is an experimental film that explores the visual representation of the Holocaust through a montage of thousands of excerpts from fictional films and television series produced between 1938 and the present.
Synopsis
Drawing from an extensive archive of over 3,000 narrative works HOLOFICTION critically examines how Holocaust imagery has been codified and reproduced in cinema across decades. The film exposes recurring visual motifs and narrative patterns that have become iconic in the portrayal of the Holocaust. Inspired by Claude Lanzmann’s skepticism toward visual representations of historical trauma, the film questions the possibility and implications of depicting such an atrocity in fictional cinema. Through its essayistic approach, HOLOFICTION invites audiences to reflect on the ethics and responsibility of cinematic storytelling, urging a deeper understanding of how these representations shape collective memory and historical perception.
HOLOFICTION is part of DARK TOURISM, a research-based artistic project conceived and developed by Michal Kosakowski. Comprising ten thematically interrelated sub-projects, it investigates the visual representation of World War II and the Holocaust in contemporary media and collective memory. www.darktourism.org
The film had its world premiere in the Venice Classics – Documentary on Cinema competition of the 82nd Venice International Film Festival on September 1, 2025, and celebrated its German premiere at the Deutsche Kinemathek in Berlin on December 4, 2025. It has since screened at festivals including the International Film Festival Rotterdam, the Jewish Film Festival Berlin Brandenburg, Docaviv Tel Aviv, the Krakow Film Festival, the Toronto Jewish Film Festival, the San Francisco Jewish Film Festival and the Melbourne International Film Festival.
Announcement by the Schmuckmuseum Pforzheim
(German original)
„Geschichte wird nicht nur geschrieben. Sie wird auch inszeniert. Mit »Holofiction« (2025) nimmt der polnisch-deutsche Filmemacher und Medienkünstler Michal Kosakowski die filmische Darstellung des Holocausts unter die Lupe. In Anwesenheit des Regisseurs wird »Holofiction« am Samstag, 3. Oktober, um 19 Uhr im Reuchlinhaus gezeigt. Es ist eine Preview im Rahmen der Langen Nacht der Demokratie, ehe der Film im November in die Kinos kommt.
Aus tausenden von Ausschnitten aus Kino- und Fernsehproduktionen entsteht eine eindringliche Montage, die vertraute Bildwelten neu sichtbar macht und fragt, wo die Möglichkeiten, aber auch die Grenzen filmischen Erzählens liegen.
Der essayistische Dokumentarfilm war im Wettbewerb der 82. Internationalen Filmfestspiele von Venedig und ist Teil des Forschungs- und Kunstprojekts DARK TOURISM, das sich mit der visuellen Darstellung des Zweiten Weltkriegs und des Holocausts in zeitgenössischen Medien auseinandersetzt.
Im Anschluss an die Vorführung findet ein Podiumsgespräch mit Regisseur Michal Kosakowski statt.“
Event Details
Date: Saturday, October 3, 2026
Time: 7:00 PM (doors open 6:30 PM)
Venue: Schmuckmuseum Pforzheim im Reuchlinhaus, lecture hall
Jahnstraße 42
75173 Pforzheim, Germany
Programme: Screening followed by a panel discussion with director Michal Kosakowski
Admission: Free (donations welcome)
Reservations:
https://kommunales-kino-pforzheim.de/movie/holofiction
or by phone: +49 7231 5661977
Organiser: Schmuckmuseum Pforzheim
In cooperation with: Kommunales Kino Pforzheim
Framework: Lange Nacht der Demokratie
Film Information
HOLOFICTION
Essayistic Documentary / Experimental
Germany / Austria 2025
102 min (24 fps version), 98 min (25 fps version)
Colour & black-and-white, no dialogue
Recommended for ages 16 and up
Written, edited and directed by: Michal Kosakowski
Music: Paolo Marzocchi
Sound design: Andrea Veneri
Produced by: Uli Aigner & Michal Kosakowski
Production: KOSAKOWSKI FILMS, Berlin
Co-production: ATELIER ULI AIGNER, Gaming, Austria
Funded by Medienboard Berlin-Brandenburg, Kulturland Niederösterreich and the Zukunftsfonds der Republik Österreich.
German Theatrical Release
HOLOFICTION opens in German cinemas on November 5, 2026, distributed by Drop-Out Cinema. Screenings in November include Nuremberg (Cinecittà), Mannheim (Cinema Quadrat, premiere with the filmmaker on November 19), Freiburg, Karlsruhe, Laupheim, Sinsheim, Wertheim and Potsdam.
Further Information
Schmuckmuseum Pforzheim:
schmuckmuseum.de – HOLOFICTION Preview
City of Pforzheim – Event Calendar:
pforzheim.de – HOLOFICTION Preview
Kommunales Kino Pforzheim:
kommunales-kino-pforzheim.de – HOLOFICTION
Long Night of Democracy:
pforzheim.de – Lange Nacht der Demokratie
langenachtderdemokratie-bw.de
German release (Drop-Out Cinema):
dropoutcinema.org – HOLOFICTION
Film page:
kosakowskifilms.com – HOLOFICTION