Axel Brauns (born 2 July 1963) is a German writer and filmmaker.
Biography
Brauns was born in
Hamburg, West Germany, and spent the first two years of his life in the quarter
Eimsbüttel
Eimsbüttel () is one of the seven boroughs (Bezirke) of Hamburg, Germany. In 2020 the population was 269,118.
History
On March 1, 2008 Eimsbüttel lost part of its area to the borough Altona where it formed the Sternschanze quarter.
Geography ...
. In 1965, his family moved to
Hamburg-Groß Flottbek. There Brauns went to a kindergarten, an elementary school and a
gymnasium, where he did his ''
Abitur
''Abitur'' (), often shortened colloquially to ''Abi'', is a qualification granted at the end of secondary education in Germany. It is conferred on students who pass their final exams at the end of ISCED 3, usually after twelve or thirteen year ...
'' at 19 years of age. He then began studying for a degree in Business Administration and Law at the
University of Hamburg, but left it in 1984 to focus on writing.
In 2000, Brauns founded a literary salon, and since 2002, he has been working as a
tax advisor.
Career as writer and filmmaker
Brauns wrote an autobiography called ''Buntschatten und Fledermäuse – Leben in einer anderen Welt'' (''Coloured Shadows and Bats – Living in Another World''), which was published in 2002 and describes his childhood and his experiences growing up with
autism
The autism spectrum, often referred to as just autism or in the context of a professional diagnosis autism spectrum disorder (ASD) or autism spectrum condition (ASC), is a neurodevelopmental condition (or conditions) characterized by difficulti ...
. He won the
Literaturförderpreis der Stadt Hamburg for an excerpt from it, after which
Hoffmann und Campe offered to publish it. ''Coloured Shadows and Bats'' came out in 2002, and reached the bestseller list of ''
Der Spiegel
''Der Spiegel'' (, lit. ''"The Mirror"'') is a German weekly news magazine published in Hamburg. With a weekly circulation of 695,100 copies, it was the largest such publication in Europe in 2011. It was founded in 1947 by John Seymour Chaloner ...
'' in the same year. In 2003, Brauns was nominated for the
Deutscher Bücherpreis
The Deutscher Bücherpreis (English: ''German Book Prize'') was a non-monetary prize for literature which was awarded at the Leipzig Book Fair by the German Publishers and Booksellers Association from 2002 to 2004.
After September 2004, the Assoc ...
, in the category "Most successful debut".
In 2004, Brauns produced his first
feature film, called ''Tsunami und Steinhaufen''. It premiered in 2008.
In September 2004, Brauns's novel ''Kraniche und Klopfer'' came out. It tells the story of a fictional girl named Adina Adelung, who lives in a house with her brother and mother. Her mother constantly brings rubbish (to which she is addicted) into her house. Eventually, Adina finds the path for a new life by meeting a woman called Erla Meier, who takes her to see cranes in a natural reserve.
In 2006, Brauns published the
detective novel ''Tag der Jagd''.
Writings
*''Buntschatten und Fledermäuse – Leben in einer anderen Welt'' (''Coloured Shadows and Bats – Living in Another World''). Hoffmann und Campe, 2002, .
*''Kraniche und Klopfer.'' Goldmann, 2004, .
*''Tag der Jagd.'' Hoffmann und Campe, 2006, .
References
*''A portion of this article was translated from the
corresponding article in the German Wikipedia.''
External links
*
*
Wie der Autist Axel Brauns ein Filmemacher wurdenbsp;– article on Brauns in ''
Die Welt'' (27 February 2009)
Erfahrungen eines Autisten (3'43'')nbsp;– interview with Brauns at
Planet Wissen „Buntschatten und Fledermäuse“nbsp;– six audio extracts from the German original of Braun's ''Coloured Shadows and Bats'', at
GEO.de
{{DEFAULTSORT:Brauns, Axel
1963 births
21st-century German writers
21st-century German male writers
German autobiographers
Film people from Hamburg
German male non-fiction writers
Living people
People from Eimsbüttel
University of Hamburg alumni
German writers with disabilities
Writers with autism
Film directors with disabilities