IN COMPETITION – BEST DOCUMENTARY FILM
THE EMPTY GRAVE (dirs. Cece Mlay & Agnes Lisa Wegner, 2024)
Sun, Feb 22 · 1:15 PM · The Main (Screening + Virtual Q&A)
Germany / Tanzania | Swahili, German, English | Documentary — 97 min
Attendance: Directors attending virtually
Selected Awards: Berlin International Film Festival (Berlinale Special; Official Selection)
Trailer: Watch trailer
The Empty Grave follows two Tanzanian families searching for relatives taken during German colonial rule—human remains removed for racist “research” and stored for decades in museum depots. Their journey leads to Germany and into a maze of institutions, paperwork, and political promises, as they fight for identification and return. Rooted in the present, the film reveals how colonial violence persists in the body—and honors the families’ resilience, grief, and determination.
Directors: Cece Mlay is a Tanzania-based filmmaker who values the communal work of filmmaking and works with Kijiweni Productions as an Assistant Director and Creative Supervisor. Agnes Lisa Wegner studied in Berlin and at Harvard and worked with German human rights organizations before turning to filmmaking; her documentaries engage questions of discrimination, racism, human rights, and solidarity.
