![Kanchi Wichmann](https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/5/55/Kanchi_Wichmann.jpg)
Kanchi Wichmann (born 1974) is a British filmmaker, best known for the lesbian feature ''
Break My Fall'' (2011) which was listed as one of ten great lesbian films to watch by the
British Film Institute
The British Film Institute (BFI) is a film and television charitable organisation which promotes and preserves film-making and television in the United Kingdom. The BFI uses funds provided by the National Lottery to encourage film production, ...
.
Life and career
Wichmann was born in
North Devon
North Devon is a local government district in Devon, England. North Devon Council is based in Barnstaple. Other towns and villages in the North Devon District include Braunton, Fremington, Ilfracombe, Instow, South Molton, Lynton and Lynmouth ...
, to an English (Yorkshire) mother and a German father. She moved around in her childhood, settling in
London
London is the capital and largest city of England and the United Kingdom, with a population of just under 9 million. It stands on the River Thames in south-east England at the head of a estuary down to the North Sea, and has been a majo ...
at the age of 17. Her training including an HND in film and video at
Surrey Institute of Art and Design and TV & Video production, City & Guilds at College of North East London, Tottenham.
At 18, Wichmann began making films using video and
Super 8
Super 8 or Super Eight may refer to:
Film
* Super 8 film, a motion picture film format released in 1965
* Super 8 film camera, a motion picture camera used to film Super 8mm motion picture format
* ''Super 8'' (2011 film), a science-fiction fi ...
. She made her first 16mm narrative short film at the age of twenty one (Travelling Light). Her first feature film ''
Break My Fall'' was set in
Hackney and released by
Peccadillo Pictures
Peccadillo Pictures is a UK-based film producer and distributor of art house, gay and lesbian, independent and world cinema. They have provided distribution for many films such as ''Weekend (2011 film), Weekend'', ''Tomboy (2011 film), Tomboy'', ...
in 2011. The film was distributed in over twenty territories worldwide via Paris-based sales agent Reel Suspects. As well as writing and directing her own films, she has worked in many film-related jobs including film festivals, cinemas and for other directors most notably in the production office of the German director
Ulrike Ottinger
Ulrike Ottinger (born 6 June 1942) is a German filmmaker and photographer.
Early life
From 1959 she was a visiting student at the Academy of Arts in Munich and worked as a painter. Her mother, Maria Weinberg, was a journalist and her father, Ul ...
for her film ''Chamisso's Shadow'' (2015).
In 2016 Wichmann wrote an article which was published in the London-based feminist film journal Another Gaze, called ''Lesbian Films Don't Make Money''. The article detailed Wichmann's struggle to raise finance on her second feature, which also featured a lesbian protagonist.
In 2017 Wichmann wrote and directed a ten-episode web series set in the Berlin queer scene called ''Mixed Messages'', which was edited by LA-based filmmaker
Cary Cronenwett
Cary Cronenwett is an American transgender writer, director, and producer born in Oklahoma. He is most well known for directing ''Maggots and Men'' (2009), ''Peace of Mind (2015),'' and ''Valencia (2013).'' Cronenwett's films vary from documentarie ...
and was released by
Peccadillo Pictures
Peccadillo Pictures is a UK-based film producer and distributor of art house, gay and lesbian, independent and world cinema. They have provided distribution for many films such as ''Weekend (2011 film), Weekend'', ''Tomboy (2011 film), Tomboy'', ...
.
As of 2014, Wichmann resides in
Berlin
Berlin ( , ) is the capital and largest city of Germany by both area and population. Its 3.7 million inhabitants make it the European Union's most populous city, according to population within city limits. One of Germany's sixteen constitue ...
, Germany.
Filmography
* ''On Standby'' (2020)
* ''Vanilla (Das Musical)'' (2019)
* ''Mixed Messages'' (2017)
* ''
Break My Fall'' (2011)
* ''I Don't Exist'' (2004)
* ''Travelling Light'' (1999)
See also
*
List of female film and television directors
This is a list of female film and television directors. Their works may include live action and/or animated features, shorts, documentaries, telemovies, TV programs, or videos.
A
* Jennifer Abbott (Canada)
* Sarah Abbott (Canada
* Jenni ...
*
List of LGBT-related films directed by women
This is a list of lesbian, gay, bisexual, and transgender-related films that were directed by women. LGBT-themed films directed by women – especially, but not exclusively, lesbian-themed movies – are an important and distinct subset of the gen ...
References
External links
*
Break My Fallwebsite
{{DEFAULTSORT:Wichmann, Kanchi
1974 births
Living people
Feminist filmmakers
British film directors
People from North Devon (district)