Martha & Niki

Give it up for Martha and Niki! Die beiden gewinnen einen Street Dance Battle nach dem anderen und räumen dann auch noch den Weltmeistertitel als erstes weibliches Team ab. Ganz oben angelangt, geht ihnen ein wenig die Puste aus, und die großen Fragen danach, wer man ist und wohin man will, tun sich auf. Besonders Martha überkommt das Gefühl, am falschen Ort zu sein. Der Film erzählt von der Balance zwischen Abheben und Auf-dem-Teppich-Bleiben und davon, wie schwer es ist, wirklich anzukommen. (Kim Busch, DOK Leipzig)

In 2010, Swedish friends Martha Nabwire and Niki Tsappos were the first ever female hip hop dance duo to beat all their opponents – men included – at the most important international street dance competition, Juste Debout in Paris. Armed with boundless energy and huge amounts of talent, they annihilated the opposition. The two girls love to dance, to be together, and to travel. They intuitively understand one another. But what happens when you don’t come out on top? After one such disappointment, the first cracks start to appear in their friendship. In spite of their shared passions, the girls have very different backgrounds, different lives, and different personalities. How can you keep your cultural heritage alive, and how can you deal with all of these things within an ambitious friendship?

Director's Biography
TORA MÅRTENS was born in Stockholm in 1978. She has a background as a still photographer. In 2007, she directed and produced the documentary TOMMY in Cuba. It competed in the short film section of the Berlin International Film Festival 2008. Her first feature documentary, Colombianos, has been awarded and shown at film festivals around the world. Martha & Niki received a Special Mention for Best Nordic Documentary in 2015. // Films (selection): TOMMY (2007, short doc), Bye Bye C’est Fini (2008, short doc), Till Maria (For Maria, 2010, short doc), Colombianos (2012, doc), Martha & Niki (2015, doc)
European Panorama Documentary 2017
Tora Mkandawire Mårtens
Schweden 2015
color
92 Minuten
OmeU
Drehbuch Tora Mkandawire Mårtens
Kamera Erik Vallsten, Niklas Nyberg, Senay Berhe, Tora Mkandawire Mårtens
Schnitt Tora Mkandawire Mårtens, Therese Elfström
Ton/Sounddesign Red Wood, Aleksander Karshikoff
Musik Kicki Halmos, Per Egland, Red Wood, Kalle Bäccman, Andreas Unge
Mit Martha Nabwire, Niki Tsappos
Produzent*innen Tora Mkandawire Mårtens (Neo Publishing, SE), Emelie Persson (SVT, SE), Kalle Bäccman (Kalle Bäccman Production, SE), Patrik Axén (Stavro Film, SE)
Produktion
Neo Publishing Krukmakargatan 46 117 26 Stockholm, Sweden me@toramartens.com www.toramartens.com
Österreichpremiere
Weltpremiere / World Premiere
Nordisk Panorama Film Festival 2015

Internationale Premiere / International Premiere
International Documentary Film Festival Amsterdam 2015

Premierenstatus / Premiere Status
Austrian Premiere