2023 Nominees

Ramstein: The Pierced Heart (Das durchstoßene Herz)

Südwestrundfunk, ffp New Media, Köln, Tax Shelter of the Belgian Federal Government BNP Paribas Fortis Film Finance

BELGIUM, GERMANY

- Feature Length Film

The Ramstein Air Day accident was one of the worst air disasters in German post-war history: On 28 August 1988, the US Air Force held its annual open day at Ramstein Air Base near Kaiserslautern. Planned as the usual cheerful, American-style public festival with a spectacular air show, it turned into a day of catastrophe with 70 fatalities and hundreds injured when three aircraft collided. Sensitive and complex, the feature film "Ramstein - Das durchstoßene Herz" (Ramstein - The Pierced Heart) tells of massive failures in security precautions and rescue measures. And above all, it tells of victims who are seriously injured, of helpers who have to make difficult triage decisions in seconds and of families who lose loved ones. They all suffer from post-traumatic stress syndrome and only years after the disaster do they finally have the opportunity to share their experiences and to process the trauma in a specially founded aftercare group.