Gusztáv Hámos
«Berlin Retour»

Arrival in the big city was always a popular subject for Berlin-related books or films. In a tape dedicated to the memory of Walter Ruttmann's 'Berlin: Symphony of a City', a girl buys a return ticket to Berlin and invites viewers to join her on a free ride through 70 years of German history. The architectural wastelands of Anhalter Bahnhof and Potsdamer Platz set the stage for electronic inserts showing historical archive footage of Berlin spanning the ‘Roaring Twenties', National Socialism, World War II, the division of the city, Soviet-style Communism in East Berlin, the workers' uprising in the East on 17 June 1953, and the Berlin Wall from construction to fall. Subtle digital effects enable the girl to effortlessly shrug off one persona and take on another, gliding through different media planes as required. The fast-rewind journey culminates in a somersault that propels her into the age of virtual urban planning.