Sex, Morality, and Disease
By Volker Barth, Anthro Media c 2003
Reality Based Edutainment Format
3 x 52’
Stage: Development
Production Cost Estimate: 450.000 €
Finance: Negotiatons with filmfunds in progress 200.000 €
250.000 € still needed
Two charming (and tempting) investigators, meet up to explore Modern
Morality. While visiting the back stages of science and society. Their journey
leads from relics of truly shameless Antique worlds, through lustful middle
ages, until today. A road movie along religion, medical helplessness,
superstition, and venereal diseases. Traveling through time, science and
societies. Starting out in the 21st century. Where almost forgotten plagues
rebound through secretive domains… The travel through time on the trace of
Sexual Diseases and their impact on morality is also an analogy of moral
evolution in times of AIDS.
Morality’s Change over Time
Part I
From Classical Antiquity until 16th century Outbreak of Syphilis -
Part II From the Onset of Syphilis until 1944 (Penicillin was invented)
Part III Since Penicillin until Today – Disease goes, Morality stays
Synopsis
Sexual morality is traditionally in the hands of the Church. Most modern
people hardly question “do we miss anything?” -- Only those who go
constantly beyond the "normal sex" are aware of how we are stuck in moral
traditions. People get stigmatized, if they perform more or different than the
mainstream. Although it is part of us. Of our nature. Yet prohibitive ideas made
their way. Starting as an invention of early church Patriarchs. And with the
support of a tiny bacteria “Treponema Pallidum”, .
Today moral conventions of the late middle ages are still valid. And this is why
AXEL, a gay artist, has developed an urge for the journey of this film. He was
struck by syphilis last year. By a plague which was supposed to be extinct.
Soon it was over. Thanks to Penicillin. But AXEL was also struck by
something more personal.
Sex, Disease and Morality
-2-
Anthro Media * Science, Nature, Living History * Documentaries, iTV, and Print Media *
Volker Barth, Egonstr. 45, D – 79104 Freiburg *
Tel +49 (0) 163 368 4227 * Fax +49 (0) 1212 626 622 8679 * eMail volker_barth@web.de
The harsh attacks of his friends and family “typical that You had to catch it!” -“use condoms!” He was very upset to meet such anger even with his friends,
whom he had thought of as liberal and open minded before this incident. An
urge arose in Axel to show, that there is rather a microbiological reason behind
all this. Even behind our moral judgement.
AXEL teams up with a sex activist.
ANIKA of DE ROODE DRAAD Amsterdam
(an organization that fights for the rights of
prostitutes). They take off to start to
understand the historical dimensions behind
Christian doctrines. They enter spheres
normally closed to the public. As exploring
medieval-church-book-pornographies.
Examining arse-kissing priest sculptures, still hanging from medieval buildings
and relics of the brothels run by the church until 16th century, when the Holy
Office was the largest employer of prostitutes.
They explore thereby not only this fascinating evolution of our moral tradition.
But the legal and human tragedies that grew out of them. The reasons for
todays criminalization, romantization, lust and fear of lust. On their quest, they
knock on the doors of prohibitionists, they enter the red light, the swinger clubs
and darkrooms. Meet fallen priests. On the other side they visit neurologists to
understand sex in the language of the brain.
At the same time they let us into their life. And let us take part in their battle
against prohibition and morality…
The strings converge within the ideas of the epidemiologist Prof. WINKLE.
Identifying “Treponema Pallidum”, a tiny bacteria, as the motor of the evolution
of our 'modern morality'…
Green Light for Red Light? – ‘ A Whore’ and ‘Gay Artist’ in Science
Documentary?
Voyeuristic? At first glance - of course. Yet using this ‘hook’.
Putting up questions, which may not come to everybody’s mind. Questions
which are sympathetic, sharp, sometimes naive, yet expose absurdities and
deep truths.
SEX, DISEASE and MORALITY reveals in a humorous way the complex
layers of this socially constructed dress called “Moral”, which we all
wear.
Anthro Media * Science, Nature, Living History * Documentaries, iTV, and Print Media *
Volker Barth, Egonstr. 45, D – 79104 Freiburg *
Tel +49 (0) 163 368 4227 * Fax +49 (0) 1212 626 622 8679 * eMail volker_barth@web.de
Director: C. Cay Wesnigk, www.cay.agdok.de
1987 he founded the C. Cay Wesnigk
Filmproduktion. Since then he has written, directed
and produced several feature films, commercials
and documentaries. In 2000 he founded OnlineFILM
AG as a public company to use digital technologies
for the distribution of audiovisual content. He is also
Vice President of agdok, Germanies largest community of
independent producers (700 members) (www.agdok.de).
F I L M s (a selection):
-
VIER WÄNDE, EINE DEUTSCHE EINHEIT (Dokumentarspiel, 1990, mit
Dominique Horowitz, Glashaus – Award of IG-Medien)
KINDER, KADER, KOMMANDEURE (Kompilationsfilm, 1991/92)
IM BUS, IN DER KNEIPE , IM ZUG, IN DER FUßGÄNGERZONE 4 Spots für
Zivilcourage
GLETSCHER - FIEBERTHERMOMETER DER ERDE (scientific Feature,
ARTE/NDR)
CARL F.W. BORGWARD, AUFSTIEG UND FALL EINES AUTOKÖNIGS (
documentary, ARD/NDR)
Producer: Volker Barth, Anthro Media
The job of science film is to handle subjects of relevance for everybody in funny, yet
interesting, and aesthetic ways - but also with taboo touching courage
Volker Barth has experience from coordination of large scale
European research projects in neurosciences. Neuroinformatics, IT,
3D, 4D. He has been working as head of the interactive film
department of iAS Interactive Systems GmbH. In 2001 he has been
setting up AnthroMedia and is developing science programms for the
international market since then.
Anthro Media * Science, Nature, Living History * Documentaries, iTV, and Print Media *
Volker Barth, Egonstr. 45, D – 79104 Freiburg *
Tel +49 (0) 163 368 4227 * Fax +49 (0) 1212 626 622 8679 * eMail volker_barth@web.de