Harun Farocki facts for kids

Harun Farocki in 2013

Harun Farocki (born January 9, 1944 – died July 30, 2014) was a German filmmaker, writer, and teacher. He was known for his unique approach to movies, often exploring how images affect us.

Early Life and Learning

Harun Farocki was born in Neutitschein, which is now called Nový Jičín in the Czech Republic. His father came from India in the 1920s. His mother was from Berlin, Germany.

After World War II, Harun lived in India and Indonesia. His family then moved to Hamburg, Germany, in 1958.

Farocki was inspired by famous artists like Bertolt Brecht and Jean-Luc Godard. He studied film at the German Film and Television Academy Berlin from 1966 to 1968. He started making films in the mid-1960s. His films were often like essays, looking at the politics behind images. From 1974 to 1984, he also edited a magazine called Filmkritik.

Later, Farocki taught film at the University of California, Berkeley from 1993 to 1999. He also became a professor at the Academy of Fine Arts Vienna. He passed away suddenly in 2014 when he was 70 years old.

Farocki's Work and Ideas

Harun Farocki made over 90 films. Most of them were short experimental documentaries. These films didn't always tell a story in the usual way. Instead, they made viewers think about what they were seeing.

In his art project called Eye/Machine (2000-2003), Farocki came up with the idea of an "operational image". This term describes images that are not made for people to look at. Instead, they are used by machines, like images from surveillance cameras or computer programs.

Farocki's work was shown in important art exhibitions. For example, it was part of the Carnegie International in Pittsburgh in 2004–05. A big show of his films was also held at Tate Modern in the UK in 2009.

In 2011, the Museum of Modern Art in the U.S. had a special exhibition. It was called "Harun Farocki: Images of War (at a Distance)." This was the first large show of his work in a U.S. museum.

Selected Films by Harun Farocki

Here are some of the films Harun Farocki worked on. The letters show his role:

• D = Director (He made the film)
• E = Editor (He put the film together)
• S = Screenplay (He wrote the script)
• P = Production (He helped manage the film's making)
• A = Actor (He appeared in the film)

Harun Farocki's Family Life

Harun Farocki's first wife, Ursula Lefkes, passed away in 1996. They had married in 1966. He later married Antje Ehmann in 2001. He had twin daughters from his first marriage, Annabel Lee and Larissa Lu. He also had eight grandchildren.

See also

In Spanish: Harun Farocki para niños