Three Stones for Jean Genet

Berlinale Shorts Special Programme 2025

There are places of yearning. There are promises that accompany us our entire lives. And there are friends, who listen and ask questions. Frieder Schlaich and Patti Smith are linked by just such a friendship. Tangier is the place, and the promise is one that was made to Jean Genet. Patti Smith has been carrying the secret around with her for many years, inside a matchbox. When chance creates a situation that brings everything together, she is able to honour her promise. Frieder accompanies Patti through the city he feels so close to, and she speaks of that which is close to her. At the cemetery they encounter a young boy who carries the spell of the story further. Two rolls of black and white film, a Bolex and the few minutes before a live performance limit the shooting time. Having the necessary concentration and knowledge of one another is what sets the film apart. The view across the ocean lies in its limitation.

To view this content, you must enable third-party cookies. >

by Frieder Schlaich (Director, Screenplay)
with Patti Smith Germany 2014 English 7' Black/White Documentary form

With

Patti Smith

Crew

Director	Frieder Schlaich
Screenplay	Frieder Schlaich
Cinematography	Frieder Schlaich
Editing	Kathrin Krottenthal
Producers	Irene von Alberti, Karim Debbagh, Frieder Schlaich

Produced by

Filmgalerie 451

World Sales

Filmgalerie 451

Photos

Frieder Schlaich

Born in Stuttgart, Germany in 1961. He studied visual communication in Hamburg, worked in film and theatre and, with Irene von Alberti, produced several shorts and documentaries. His debut feature film Paul Bowles: Halbmond won several prizes including the German Film Critics’ Award. He has produced films by Heinz Emigholz, Werner Schroeter, Christoph Schlingensief, Elfi Mikesch, Angela Schanelec and Omer Fast as well as Robert Schwentke’s Seneca, which was presented in the 2023 Berlinale Special. His short Three Stones for Jean Genet, which is rescreening in the “You and I Are Not Alone – Berlinale Shorts Revisited” programme as part of the festival’s 75th anniversary celebrations, was first shown at the Berlinale in 2014.

Filmography (selection)

1993 Am Strand von Merkala 1995 Paul Bowles – Halbmond 1999 Otomo 2001 99 Euro-Films 2005 Christoph Schlingensief und seine Filme 2012 Weil ich schöner bin 2014 Three Stones for Jean Genet 2017 Naomis Reise

Bio- & filmography as of Berlinale 2025