Forget Meyn Not: Documentary about the occupation of Hambacher Forst 2018 with footage of the film student and activist Steffen Meyn, who tragically died during the eviction.
Plot and background
Driven by a fascination for activism and a belief in a better community, young film student Steffen Meyn accompanied the occupation of Hambach Forest in 2018 in solidarity, but by no means uncritically. In the forest, activists protested against the clearing of the forest by RWE. As a reporter, Meyn filmed the police’s eviction attempts live with his 360° camera, inevitably becoming the activists’ protector against police violence. He was forced to circumvent the restricted freedom of the press in the forest and pursue his new task in the treetops. A decision that was to cost him his life. On the seventh day of the eviction, 19 September 2018, the filmmaker fell to his death and died on the spot.
“Vergiss Meyn nicht” – background, cast, cinema release
The young German director trio Fabiana Fragale, Kilian Kuhlendahl and Jens Mühlhoff bring a documentary created from Steffen Meyn’s left-behind recordings to the screen. In addition to being an impressive study of activism, it also raises questions about sacrifice for political causes and the clash between utopia and painful reality, which are more topical than ever in the face of blocked roads and raids. The three filmmakers are good friends of Steffen Meyn, and with the documentary “Vergiss Meyn nicht” they are recording for posterity their friend’s unfinished work on the occupation of Hambach Forest, as well as his enthusiasm for the occupation and his radicalisation in contrast with his moral quarrel about the methods used.
“Don’t Forget Meyn” opens in German cinemas on 19 September 2023, the fifth anniversary of Steffen Meyn’s death.
