Life Is Not a Competition, But I’m Winning — Hybrid feature
“woozy, stylized visuals … turned up to the max.” — The Guardian


shot on raw    Alexa Mini (hde, ARRIRAW), Phantom Flex (2.8K), Zenmuse X7
lensed with    B&L Super Baltar · Century Periscope · 8R · Skater Scope · Zeiss Highspeed (uncoated)
asect    2.39:1
Quiet, spatially precise camera with a hybrid doc-fiction sensibility; intentional color and controlled aberrations unify diverse materials in CinemaScope.




Festivals

2023, Locarno Film Festival – First Look Roughcut
2023, Venice International Film Festival, Settimana della Critica – World Premiere
2023, Filmfest Hamburg – German Premiere
2023, First Steps Awards
2023, Filmfest Osnabrück – Opening Film
2023, Queer Film Festival Munich – Official Selection
2023, Hamburg International Queer Film Festival – Official Selection
2023, MIX Copenhagen – Danish Premiere
2023, DocLisboa – Portuguese Premiere
2023, Queerfilm Festival Bremen – Official Selection
2023, Tallinn Black Nights Film Festival – Estonian Premiere
2023, Braunschweig International Film Festival – Official Selection
2023, PinkPanorama Filmfestival Luzern – Swiss Premiere
2023, Europa Cinema al Femminile Naples – Official Selection
2023, Around the World in 14 Films – Berlin Premiere
2024, Festival del Cinema Tedesco Rom
2024, Festival International de Films de Femmes de Créteil – French Premiere
2024, BFI Flare London LGBTQIA+ Film Festival – British Premiere
2024, Sunny Bunny Film Festival Kyiv – Ukrainian Premiere
2024, One World International Human Rights Film Festival – Czech Premiere
2024, Crossing Europe Linz – Austrian Premiere
2024, Internationales Frauen Film Fest Dortmund + Köln
2024, Dokka Dokumentarfilmfestival Karlsruhe
2024, Frameline San Francisco – US-American Premiere
2024, In the Palace ISFF – Bulgarian Premiere
2024, New Fest – New York’s LGBTQ+ Film Festival


Awards

2021, ARRI Production Award (Pharos, Arri Rental)
2021, Sunny Side of the Doc Prize – DOK.fest Munich
2021, British Pathé Archive Award – DOK.forum Munich
2023, Best Cinematography Michael-Ballhaus-Award – First Steps Awards
2024, Production Award – Starter Filmpreis der Stadt München
2024, Winner National Competition for Women Director of Photography – Int. Women Film Fest Dortmund + Cologne

Credits

Director and Writer   Julia Fuhr Mann
Producer   Melissa Byrne, Sophie Ahrens, Fabian Altenried, Kristof Gerega
Director of Photography   Caroline Spreitzenbart
1st AC  Nadja Krüger
2nd AC   Teresa Renn
DIT   Cami Lakonic
Steadicam   Felix Lang
Drone Operator   Alina Albrecht, Florian Reeh
Gaffer   Janne Ebel
Electricians   Hanife Scheele, Jenny Röders, Loup Deflandre, Paulina Kaulard, Mathilda Kruschel, Francy Fabritz, Elisa Daniel, Regina Wiebe
Costume Design Angela Queins
Production Design Mireia Vila Soriano, Sonja Schreiber
Make-up artist Mai Strathmann
Colorgrading   Andreas “Andi” Lautil
Vfx artists   Isabelle Kramer, Fabian Peitzsch
3sat/ZDF   Katya Mader
Editing   Merit Giesen, Melanie Jilg
Production Assistant   Edgar Jesus Martinez Chavez, Ilaaf Khalfalla, Tabitha Farah Potthoff, Mareike Mössner
Production Coordination   Jennifer Drake

Athens
Steadicam   Stefan Knapp
Drone Operator   Giannis Koutsoulas
1st AC   Georgios Metaxas
Gaffer   Alexis Lountzis

Full Crew and Cast @ Crew United

A production by Schuldenberg Films in co-production with 3Sat, in collaboration with the Hochschule für Fernsehen und Film München, supported by FFF Bayern with the kind assistance of the Freundeskreis München.



Press

  • The Guardian, Life Is Not a Competition, But I’m Winning review – intelligent exploration of trans athletes
  • The Hollywood Reporter, Life Is Not a Competition, But I’m Winning:
    lo sport queer (del futuro) val bene un doc “ibrido”
  • Screendaily, ‘Life Is Not A Competition, But I’m Winning’: Venice Review
  • Süddeutsche Zeitung, Die Stunde der Siegerin
  • Deadline, Venice Critics’ Week Unveils 2023 Line-Up; Contenders include Moin Hussain’s ‘Sky Peals’ & Lee Hong-Chi’s ‘Love Is A Gun’
  • Variety, Locarno Unveils First Look on German Cinema, a New Talent Showcase
  • Variety, Documentary About Gender in Athletics ‘Life Is Not a Competition But I Am Winning’ Acquired by First Hand Films Ahead of Venice Premiere
  • Netflix Woche            First Steps Awards: Netflix gratuliert den Preisträger*innen
  • Deutschlandfunk Kultur            Nachwuchs-Kamerafrauen ausgezeichnet