Nelly’s Story
Directed by Jonas Steinacker, 2023
Nelly’s Story explores the impact of social media on children, and more broadly how digital platforms are reshaping the way we communicate.
The film works with a fluid, constantly moving camera, inspired by the immediacy of Instagram Stories. It is made up of fragmented glimpses of a situation that feel direct and unfiltered, even though they are carefully framed and selected. Instead of classical, static shot–reverse shot structures, the film observes in a way that feels spontaneous, yet maintains a deliberate point of view. To retain precise control over rhythm and timing in the edit, many scenes were shot in both directions. This allowed the performances to stay alive without losing the closeness of the visual approach.
The film was shot in a single location, which we had access to over an extended period of time. This allowed for a lot of preparation and was key for developing the blocking and staging.
For this project, I specifically trained in Steadicam operating in order to execute the visual concept myself.
The film was nominated for the Max Ophüls Preis, screened at several festivals, and will be included in German school materials by Westermann Verlag in 2026.
Awards
“Goldener Spitz” – SPITZiale Filmfestival Espelkamp (April 2023, Germany)
“Best Short Film v-shorts” – Alpinale Kurzfilmfestival (August 2023, Austria)
Camgaroo Award “Emotion” – Camgaroo Awards (2023, Germany)
Festival Screenings (selection)
Filmfestival Max Ophüls Preis (January 2023, Germany)
Landshuter Kurzfilmfestival (March 2023, Germany)
Crossing Europe Filmfestival (April 2023, Austria)
Internationale Filmfestspiele Karlsruhe (April 2023, Germany)
SPITZiale Filmfestival Espelkamp (April 2023, Germany)
Werkstatt der Jungen Filmszene (May 2023, Germany)
Internationales Filmfest Emden-Norderney (June 2023, Germany)
FEST – New Directors | New Films Festival (June 2023, Portugal)
Valencia International Film Festival Cinema Jove (June 2023, Spain)
Bundesfestival Junger Film (June 2023, Germany)
Rüsselsheimer Filmtage (June 2023, Germany)
Caostica – International Short Film Festival Bilbao (June 2023, Spain)
Camgaroo Awards (June 2023, Germany)
Pula Film Festival (July 2023, Croatia)
Filmfestival Kitzbühel (August 2023, Austria)
Alpinale Kurzfilmfestival (August 2023, Austria)
Open Air Filmfest Weiterstadt (August 2023, Germany)
Flickers’ Rhode Island International Film Festival (August 2023, USA)
Festivals of Nations (September 2023, Austria)
KO:SH Film Fest (September 2023, Albania)
Filmfestival Münster (September 2023, Germany)
Biberbacher Filmfestspiele (November 2023, Germany)
Brest European Short Film Festival (November 2023, France)
Eat My Shorts Hagen (November 2023, Germany)
kurzfilmfestival fh-kufstein (November 2023, Austria)
Kulturgut Ost Saarbrücken (December 2023, Germany)
