Mâna care taie + Die Gebliebenen

Alexandra Tatar spends time with her mother, who lives in Romania, during the pandemic by signing up as a harvest worker at an Austrian winery in autumn 2020. The resulting video work Mâna care taie reflects Tatar's own experiences and reveals imperialist power structures within Europe. The work uses a multi-layered collage of video footage, mobile phone videos, photographs, conversation recordings, soundscapes and an astute voice-over in her native language. It questions the hegemonic image of Austrian wine culture by altering landscape images and revealing hidden contexts of meaning.

In one of the last remaining sewing and textile factories in Austria, the industry's last master craftswomen are at work. The film offers an intimate glimpse into their daily lives, with a calm camera capturing the routine. Here, mutual care and solidarity prevail. Most of the clothing industry has left Austria and Europe, but these women keep the tradition alive. With the sound of whirring machines in the background, they share stories about their daily work and highlight the significance of their vanishing craft in a globalized textile industry. A moving portrait of female workers who are fighting against the tide of change.