Ludwig Wüst

Ludwig Wüst (born 29 April 1965 in Bavaria, Germany) is an Austrian film director, scriptwriter and producer.

Ludwig Wüst grew up in Bavaria. He moved to Vienna, where he studied acting and singing at the University of Music and Performing Arts. He has worked as theater director in Frankfurt, Berlin, the Opera Leipzig and in Vienna at the Wiener Festwochen.

In 1998 Ludwig Wüst participated as an actor in the premiere of one of Hermann Nitsch's Orgien Mysterien Theater performances.

His first feature film KOMA (2009) raised a lot of attention from media and critics alike. Due to its realism, the style of his films has been compared to Michael Haneke, Ulrich Seidl or the Dardenne-brothers. His film TAPE END (2011) was shot in a single frame lasting 60 minutes without a single cut. During the actual shooting, director Ludwig Wüst was not present at the set leaving the actors alone guided only by certain instructions.

The internet as a medium for film plays an important role in Ludwig Wüst's work. The theatrical release of his debut feature KOMA in Austria happened simultaneously with a worldwide release as a video on demand on the internet.

For the short film PASOLINICODE02112011 Wüst went a step further in using the internet as a platform for films. On 2 November 2011, the anniversary of Pier Paolo Pasolini's death in Ostia, the film had its world premiere exclusively on the internet. Later it was shown at film festivals and as a video installation at the Kunsthalle Wien.

"My Father's House" was first presented to the public at the 21er Haus, the Austrian museum for the art of the 21st century. Its world premiere took place at the Karlovy Vary International Film Festival 2013. The film is both a work of its own as well as the pilot for the "Heimatfilm"-trilogy. The second film of the trilogy, "Farewell", was presented in 2014, after a series of festival attendances, among them in Karlovy Vary, along with "My Father's House" at the Austrian Film Museum. The final part of the trilogy, "Heimatfilm", had its World Premiere at the Diagonale and was also presented at the Austrian Film Museum. "Heimatfilm" is an anthology film about how people across different generations cope with the question of belonging and home.

Wüst's latest work, "Departure", is going to have the World Premiere at the Berlinale.

Films

• 2002: Egyptian Eclipse (Ägyptische Finsternis)
• 2005: Close-up (Nahaufnahme)
• 2006: Two Women (Zwei Frauen)
• 2007: Bon Voyage
• 2009: KOMA
• 2011: TAPE END
• 2012: PASOLINICODE02112011
• 2013: My Father's House (Das Haus meines Vaters)
• 2014: Farewell (Abschied)
• 2015: (no title)
• 2016: Heimatfilm
• 2018: Departure (Aufbruch)

Awards

• Moscow International Film Festival 2009 and 2011: Official Competition Perspective - KOMA and TAPE END
• Festival du nouveau cinéma Montréal 2009: Official Competition - KOMA
• Tamil Nadu International Film Festival 2009: Best Film for KOMA
• Max-Ophüls-Preis Saarbrücken 2010, 2014: Official Selection - KOMA and My Father's House
• Karlovy Vary International Film Festival 2013: Official Selection - My Father's House