Honolulu’s seven different stories portray a weekend on the edge of a large city: strange coincidences, life-changing decisions, unavoidable fates or just simply refreshing banalities. A completely normal weekend. But like every weekend the most important one in the lives of the young people we meet in the film. Snapshots of joie-de-vivre full of contradictions, driven by the lust for love and life. 24 hours giving it loads: all dressed up … setting off … getting there … or maybe not. —german-films.de
Vanessa Jopp, born February 28, 1971, in Leonberg started to study economics before she enrolled at Munich’s Hochschule für Film und Fernsehen in 1993. She graduated in 1999 with a film and TV movie diploma. Jopp then made several short films and music videos and became an employee of the comedy programme “Wochenshow”. After “Honolulu” (1999), a collaboration with five fellow students, Jopp caused a stir with the adolescent love triangle story “Vergiss Amerika” (“Forget America”, 2000), that won the first Steps award among several other awards. Her next film, “Engel und Joe” (“Engel + Joe”, 2001), also won several awards. Furthermore, Jopp directed a film for the Bremen branch of the "Tatort“ crime film series, called “Der schwarze Troll”, in 2003.
At the 2006 Berlinale, Jopp’s third film “Komm näher” (“Happy As One”) premiered in the Panorama section. The closely observed ensemble movie about a series of hugely dissimilar Berlin-based characters and their search for love received… read more
Matthias Lehmann , born in 1969, studied at the Academy for Television and Film (HFF/M) in Munich from 1991 to 1997. During these years he worked as a director of advertising spots, as a cutter, storyboard draughtsman and cameraman. His first shorts as a director, also dating from this period, include Die Nacht des Photographen, which screened at Hof in 1993 and Die Reparatur, which won the first prize in Lodze and earned the rating “besonders wertvoll”. Together with Wim Wenders and fellow students at the HFF/M, he also produced the short film Die Brueder Skladanovsky. In 1997, with Pas de Deux, he presented the first, still short film featuring the anti-heroes from the Ruhr, Hoffi and Lehmi. This film received many awards, including: the Friedrich-Wilhelm-Murnau Prize for shorts, Audience Awards at the Dresden Film Festival and the Exground Festival, and the Cultural Promotion Prize of the City of Munich. During the last two years he has made a total of 13 advertising spots, including… read more