I Was at Home, But . . .

March 3, 2020 · Central Cinema · 7:00 p.m.

“A complex, challenging but brilliant work.” — Hollywood Reporter (93% Fresh)

I Was at Home, But… tells the story of Astrid (Maren Eggert), a forty-something mother of two, struggling to regain her balance in the wake of her husband’s death. Her adolescent son Phillip (Jakob Lassalle) disappeared for a week and now that he has returned, he faces disciplinary action at school and his toe requires amputation. As new questions confront Astrid from every angle, even simple activities like buying a bicycle or engaging with a work of art, are fraught with unexpected challenges.

In her signature elliptical style and with a gentle sense of humor, Schanelec weaves together these narrative strands and more—a school production of Hamlet, a pair of teachers deciding whether to start a family, a donkey and a dog who share a home—to create an indelible picture of a small community grappling with fundamental questions of existence.

About the Filmmaker

“My films are based on the idea that a large part of life is impenetrable, full of misunderstandings and delivered at random. The characters live in contradiction with the fact of being tied to their destinies and their various attempts to fight against them.” — Angela Schanelec

With the American release of I Was at Home, But . . . Angela Schanelec is finally receiving much-deserved recognition for three decades of brilliant and challenging work. After winning the top directing prize at the 2019 Berlinale, she is being honored this winter with career retrospectives at the Harvard Film Archive, Toronto International Film Festival, and Film at Lincoln Center.

Read Andréa Picard’s excellent essay from the TIFF retro.