GDR 1984, Performer: Puhdys, Amiga/Sony Entertainment GmbH, Images: Television of the GDR, 4 min.

 

In the early 1980s, the Cold War escalated one last time. People on both sides of the Iron Curtain once again felt threatened by possible nuclear attacks. The GDR's largest rock band, Puhdys, addressed this nuclear fear by covering the anti-war anthem "Hiroshima" by the British rock group Wishful Thinking. This live recording is from a concert celebrating the band's 15th anniversary in 1984 at the Stadthalle Karl-Marx-Stadt (Chemnitz). 

 

 

USA/Japan, 2023,  Director and Producer Hideaki Ito, Assistant  Producers: Rieko Tomomatsu, Naomi Sakai, Sachiko Kamakura, Chieko Watanabe, Narrator: Alec  Baldwin, 

Documentary, English 76 min. with German subtitles

 

In 2001, baby teeth were found in the Tyson Valley in St. Louis. They were part of 320,000 baby teeth collected for a project half-a-century earlier. Few people now know that the continental US is radioactive. The US has conducted more than 100 atmospheric nuclear tests at home and more than 100 in the Pacific. Ironically, vast amounts of radioactive material generated by the nuclear tests ended up on U.S. soil. The enormous amount of radioactive material produced by the nuclear explosions was carried by the wind across the continent, where it fell to the ground in rain and snow, contaminating pastures, vegetables and water. Everywhere, there were reports of radioactive contamination. Milk was a special source of concern, given that it was considered an essential source of nutrition for children. Milk from cows feeding on contaminated pastures contained plentiful amounts of Strontium 90. The strontium entered children's bodies, stayed in their bones, and emitted radiation that attacked their cells. At that point, scientists and mothers in St. Louis launched an ambitious project to measure Strontium 90 in baby teeth to find out if their children were being exposed. 

 

 

 

 

 

USA/Mexico, 2023, Director Pedro Reyes Alvarez, Producer SITE Santa Fe, Documentary, 24 min. English

 

Under the Cloud is a short documentary that examines the ongoing legacy of nuclear violence in the American Southwest, where uranium extraction and nuclear testing have left deep scars on both the land and its people. Featuring voices like Leona Morgan, a Diné anti-nuclear activist, the film reminds us that nuclear energy and nuclear weapons are inseparable—a fact that remains dangerously overlooked. Alongside her, other community members speak about the destruction of their environment, the health crises that continue to afflict their people, and their resistance to the mining of sacred lands

Pedro Reyes is a multidisciplinary Mexican artist whose work spans between sculpture, architecture, video and collaborative action. With a career dedicated to exploring social and political themes through creative interventions, Reyes focuses on transforming instruments of violence into tools for peace and community engagement. His innovative projects blend art, activism, and education, often addressing issues such as disarmament, nuclear threat, and environmental justice.

 

 

 

In the suburbs of Denver, the U.S. secretly manufactured thousands of atomic weapons, leaving behind a toxic legacy that will persist for generations. The Rocky Flats plant produced a staggering 70,000 atomic bombs, each serving as a “trigger” for thermonuclear warheads. Concealed by government secrecy, the plant's fires, leaks, and illicit dumping of nuclear waste contaminated the Denver area with long-lived radioactive toxins.

Today, the radioactive legacy of Rocky Flats continues to threaten public health, yet surprisingly few people are aware the plant ever existed.

Website: https://halflifeofmemory.com

 

 

 

Germany, 2023, Director and Production: Moritz Enders, Documentary, 26 min.

 

During the Kosovo War, NATO used tons of uranium munitions against the former Yugoslavia. Since then, a cancer epidemic has raged there. Lawyer Srdjan Aleksić refuses to accept this – and wants to sue the military alliance. Does he have a chance in his fight for justice? Director Enders accompanies the lawyer, whose family has also been affected by the consequences of the use of uranium weapons in the 1999 Yugoslav War and who is currently conducting several legal proceedings. Aleksić is pursuing legal action to ensure that the numerous victims of the NATO bombings receive compensation.

 

Moritz Enders: "In my opinion, NATO has clearly committed war crimes. While the  production and possession of uranium weapons are not yet prohibited by treaty, their use violates international humanitarian law, human rights, and environmental rights. What makes matters worse is that NATO didn't actually attack military targets with uranium ammunition, which would have made a certain amount of sense from a military-tactical perspective. Due to its hardness, uranium ammunition is capable of penetrating the armor of heavy vehicles, such as battle tanks. Yet NATO used it to attack targets that it could have also attacked with conventional ammunition without compromising the effectiveness of the attacks."

 

 

 

France/Germany/Ukraine, 2022, Director: Emi Dietrich, Documentary, Russian/Ukrainian with German subtitles, 25 min.

 

While politicians are once again considering the expansion of nuclear energy, its dangers are often forgotten or even concealed. Liquidators from Borodyanka, Kharkiv, and Ivankiv recount their dangerous missions during the Chernobyl disaster. They discuss the effects of radiation on their health, their current situation, and their views on nuclear energy. 

 

 

 

Germany, 2023, directed by Reinhart Brüning, documentary, 53 min.

 

How safe are nuclear power plants in war zones? In 2024/2025, Ukraine experienced its worst winter to date. Bombs and drones are destroying the infrastructure and threatening the safety of the nuclear power plants. Added to this is the occupation by the Russian military. Refugee power plant workers report on the desolate situation at the occupied Zaporizhzhia nuclear power plant. This gripping documentary reveals the extraordinary stories of the relentless struggle to protect Europe from the next nuclear disaster. To what extent have the strict safety measures at Zaporizhzhia, Europe's largest nuclear power plant, fallen victim to the war? Reinhart Brüning: „After several reports on Chernobyl and Fukushima, I actually thought I'd finished with this topic. But then the attack on Ukraine came along, and the issue of nuclear power plant safety appeared in a new light."

 

 

 

 

This public event, sponsored by festival partner ICBUW, follows the film screening "Toxic NATO" the previous day. Attorney Aleksic, Italian attorney Angelo Tartaglia, and ICBUW Co-Chairs Ria Verjauw and Prof. Manfred Mohr will discuss the global status of the banning of uranium ammunition and the idea of establishing an international assistance system for DU victims. 

The event is hybrid and held in English (www.icbuw.eu)

 

 

France, 2024, Director: Cédric Picaud, Production: Vincent Gazaigne, Talweg Production, France Télévisions, TV5MONDE, Documentary, French / English, 53 min.

 

Pontfaverger-Moronvilliers in northeastern France is known for its wine and champagne. Over 60 years ago, scientists from Paris came to the Pontfaverger-Moronvilliers region to build the so-called Polygon on a former battlefield. The experimental center served as a test site for the detonators of the French atomic bomb. Radioactive elements were also used in the tests. Under the direction of engineers from Paris, the Polygon was built, maintained, and monitored by the residents in the region. Ten years after its closure, Damien Girard knows that the Polygon has contaminated soil and local population, but also their souls. As mayor, he wants to break the silence and uncover this secret that has been shared by an entire village for three generations.

 

 

 

 

 

USA/Japan, 2023, Director and Producer: Hideaki Ito, Production Assistants: Rieko Tomomatsu, Naomi Sakai, Sachiko Kamakura, Chieko Watanabe, Narrated by: Alec Baldwin, Documentary, English, 76 min.

 

 

 

 

 

Costa Rica, 2009, 28 min, Director: Pablo Ortega, Producer Isabel Macdonald and San José Quaker Peace Center, Starring Damacio A. Lopez, English with Spanish subtitles

 

Uranium 238 depicts the hazards that the use of depleted uranium or DU in conventional weapons poses for the health of soldiers and civilians. Through interviews with soldiers, scientists and activists, the documentary explores the health hazards when this radioactive and toxic material is ingested or inhaled by people in the battle fields and shooting ranges. Based in scientific data this video has been used by the International Coalition to Ban Uranium Weapons (ICBUW) as part of its international campaign to prohibit DU as a military component.

"The Pentagon's Dirty Pool by Pablo Ortega is another film that dismantles disinformation. Pablo Ortega's short film is a rich source of information about using radioactive depleted uranium as weapons and about the consequences of doing so. You must see it!" João Luiz Leocadio, Uranium Film Festival Jury member, Nuclear Engineer and Professor of the Department of Cinema & Video of the Federal Fluminense University (UFF). 

 

 

 

Book presentation by Damacio A. Lopez from New Mexico. Damacio Lopez is a U.S. Air Force Veteran and has researched the health and environmental effects of depleted uranium weapons since 1985. He advocates for a Global Action Call to ban uranium weapons. This Action Call is supported by Veterans for Peace, The International Coalition to Ban Uranium Weapons and the International Physicians for Social Responsibility among others.

 

 

 

USA, 1989/2024, Directors and Producers Mark Mori and Susan J. Robinson, 4K Restoration Kirsten Larvick, 55 min, Documentary, English Trailer: https://buff.ly/3SVLqKu

Academy Award nominated Building Bombs, in a new 4k film restoration, revisits the glory days of the atomic age, its legacy of nuclear weapons waste, and its troubling questions still unanswered. Insider stories and rare archival footage reveal the inner workings of one of the world’s largest nuclear bomb plants and its toll on the environment and human hearts. The film sparked a movement by ordinary people and rock stars that changed U.S. national policy. 

 

 

 

UK, 2024, Directed, edited and produced by Laurie Griffiths and Jonty Tacon, Original Music Score Luke Thomas, Academic Advisor Leila Dawney, Documentary, English, 25 min

    

Set in the remote Lithuanian border town of Visaginas – a former Soviet town that is defined by its founding purpose of housing the workers and builders of what was once one of the world’s most powerful nuclear power stations. The Ignalina Nuclear Power Plant secured an energy independence for Lithuania but the prospect of a former-Soviet nuclear power plant that shared the same RBMK design as Chernobyl operating in Europe, proved unpalatable for Brussels and its decommissioning became a central condition of Lithuania’s acceptance into the European Union. With unprecedented access to the deeply guarded inner sanctum of the power station itself, the impact of the plant’s closure on the largely Russian-speaking people of Visaginas is shared by the first generation to emerge from the town.  www.griffithstacon.com

 

Friday, October 10th, 8 p.m. Cinema & Bar in der Königstadt  

Television Event

USA/Australia, 2020, Director & Producer: Jeff Daniels, English with German subtitles, 91 min.
The American television film "The Day After," broadcast in 1983, about the consequences of a nuclear war between the USA and the Soviet Union, was one of the most widely watched films in history. At the dramatic height of the Cold War, "The Day After" showed in prime time how the nuclear arms race affects us all. "Television Event" now looks behind the scenes with unique archive footage and shows how the apocalyptic film was made and what consequences it had. A commercial TV station created an emotional connection with an audience of over 100 million people, forcing the first nuclear disarmament negotiations between US President Ronald Reagan and Mikhail Gorbachev.  "Nuclear war. The most devastating threat humanity has ever faced, apart from climate change. And yet so terrifying that no one can bear to think about it. So how do you get ordinary people to watch?“ https://televisionevent.com

Best Feature Documentary of the 2022 Uranium Film Festival.
 

 

 

 

Germany / Taiwan, 2022, Director: Patrik Thomas, Producer: The Random Collective, Arthouse Fiction, 25 min. 

 

As one of the many nuclear powered countries, Taiwan is constantly facing the issue on how to deal with its nuclear waste. After decades of controversial governmental decisions, a new solution seems possible: a citizen-powered decentralized storage strategy. The film accompanies two governmental employees with their daily struggle of redistributing the nuclear waste to all Taiwanese citizens.

Patrik Thomas is a German/Portuguese artist and filmmaker. His work explores hybrid forms of cinema, video art and performance, often with the principal of a collaborative work approach. Website: https://patrikthomas.de 

 

 

 

Germany, 2024, Directors:  Leila Lubosch, Andrea Lagoda, Raphael Stiemke, Production: Raphael Stiemke, Zoe Tercier, Ruta Nonnenbroich, Documentary, 53 min.

 

The film is a project by students at TU Berlin as part of the so-called sustainability workshop, which was developed under the supervision of the nuclear energy teaching and research area of the Department of Economic and Infrastructure Policy at TU Berlin. The students have diverse backgrounds in ecology and sustainability studies, economics, and engineering - notably, the students are not film students. In around 50 minutes, it describes the main challenges that currently exist in the disposal of radioactive waste, especially highly radioactive waste, in Germany and addresses various perspectives from the public, regulatory authorities, research and other stakeholders.  

 

 

 

 

Italy / Portugal, 2024, Director: Daniele Grosso, Animation, English, 6 min. 

 

On the 24th of June, 1958 the philosopher and anti-nuclear activist Günther Anders was flying to Japan to take part in the Fourth World Conference Against Atomic and Hydrogen Bombs and for Disarmament. He recollected this experience in his book "The Man on the Bridge: Diary from Hiroshima and Nagasaki“.

 

 

 

USA, 2025, Directors: Ari Beser,

Regis Hirwa, Documentary, English, Japanese, 8 min. 

 

Ari Beser is the Grandson of Jacob Beser, the only man to fly aboard both planes that dropped the atomic bombs over Hiroshima and Nagasaki. Ari reflects on the justification of his grandfather's mission as he begins to write his latest piece for the Japanese Asahi Shimbun (A New York Times affiliate). What does he really think about the mission many say ended the war? 

 Ari Beser is the Founder and lead Filmmaker of Goss Grove Films–A global first storytelling incubator focusing on next generation filmmakers. He has spent over 10 years working with atomic bomb survivors to inherit and convey their testimonies. www.aribeserphotography.com

 

 

USA, 2022, Directors: Michael Dwyer, Chuck Gomez, Producer: Michael Dwyer, Documentary, English, 20 min. 

 

Tomiko Morimoto West watched from her schoolyard as a low-flying B-29 dropped the first atomic bomb on Hiroshima on August 6, 1945, killing her mother and other family members. Thirteen-year-old Tomiko searched the devastated city for the body of her grandfather to save him the injustice of a mass burial, cremating him under mountain tree branches. She went on to marry an American GI, become a professor at Vassar College, and at age 90 has only one wish: that world leaders work together for global peace.  https://www.appreciationfilm.com

 

 

 

Japan/USA, 1995/2025, Directors & Producers: Chris Beaver & Judy Irving, Digital Restoration: Gary Coates, Documentary, English/Japanese, 30 min.

 

Produced by Emmy Award-winning filmmakers, Nagasaki Journey is a powerful, yet hopeful look at the immediate and continuing aftermath of the atomic bomb dropped August 9, 1945 on Nagasaki, Japan. The film tells the moving personal stories of two Japanese survivors and a U.S. Marine, who was one of the first American troops to occupy the city after the war ended. They reveal how the impact of this single bomb forever transformed their lives and their thinking. Despite the enormous wartime tragedy, their common humanity transcended previous hatreds, providing hope the Nagasaki bomb would be the last atomic weapon dropped in warfare. cbfilms.net

 

 

 

Germany, 1986, Director: Christoph Boekel, Short Film, Production: Baum-Film, 29 min.

 

An essay on the unimaginable. An experimental film. With formal rigor, it depicts people sitting around a green table engaged in an enigmatic task. The result of their work makes the unimaginability of the atomic bomb being dropped on Hiroshima comprehensible for a cinematic moment. Christoph Boekel: "The film is unfortunately very topical again; the threshold for the use of nuclear weapons has been lowered.“

 

 

 

 

USA, 2025, Director and Producer Peter Matulavich, Documentary, 21 min

 

The film is based on the findings of Japanese and American medical teams dispatched to Hiroshima in the days and weeks following the bombing. It depicts the utter chaos and nearly indescribable horror experienced there. Its release coincides with the 80th anniversary of the bombing and the end of World War II.

Peter Matulavich is an award-winning producer and director of television documentaries for networks such as ABC and Turner Broadcasting. "With 'The Horrors of Hiroshima,' I wanted to depict in stark detail the horrific medical and physical effects of the Hiroshima bombing, as recounted by the first Japanese and American soldiers who entered the city." 

 

 

USA, 2025, Director Greg Mitchell, Documentary, English. 52 min.

 

There have been numerous films on The Bomb, even one or two about Nagasaki,  but “The Atomic Bowl: Football at Ground Zero — and Nuclear Peril Today” is unique, and with many lessons and warnings for today–as nuclear dangers proliferate and civilian casualties in wars climb even higher. This football showdown featured college and pro  stars, on January 1, 1946, and in (of all places) Nagasaki, near ground zero for the second atomic bomb, which killed over 80,000 just a few weeks earlier. The film, narrated by Peter Coyote, is not only the first full first-hand account of the game, but a provocative and disturbing story of the decision to drop a second atomic bomb just three days after Hiroshima–and the dangerous message to today’s leaders. Nearly all of the victims of the “forgotten bomb” were women and children and other civilians.

This important film, which includes rare footage and dozens of never published photographs, then offers a convincing argument about the relevance of Nagasaki today as mass civilian casualties in wars surge and nuclear dangers by all estimates grow every year. Website: https://gregmitchphoto.com/atomicbowl/

 

 

International Uranium Film Festival Gründerin

und Direktorin aus Rio de Janeiro sowie 

Preisträgerin des Nuclear-Free Future Awards 2025

International Uranium Film Festival Gründer,

Festspielleiter und Preisträger des 

Nuclear-Free Future Awards 2025