When does the screening take place?

The screening of A Disease Like a Poem takes place on October 9, 2026, from 16:15 to 17:45.

Where is the film shown?

The event takes place at Kamera in Bielefeld.

What is the documentary about?

The film follows Jelena Ilić's relationship with her mentally ill father and combines personal conversations with photographs, paintings, sculptures, video footage, and animation.

Who directed the film?

Direction and screenplay are by Jelena Ilić.

How long is the film?

Available film information indicates a runtime of approximately 81 to 88 minutes, depending on the source.

Is there information about the admission price?

For this specific screening at Kamera Bielefeld, no verified admission price is provided.

A Disease Like a Poem: Documentary Film About Art, Illness, and New Closeness

Name: A Disease Like a Poem
Start: 2026-10-09T16:15:00+02:00
End: 2026-10-09T17:45:00+02:00
Location: Kamera

A Disease Like a Poem: A touching documentary about closeness, fear, and artistic self-assertion

On October 9, 2026, an extraordinary documentary film will be the focus at Kamera Bielefeld: A Disease Like a Poem by Jelena Ilić combines personal family history, psychological reflection, and an idiosyncratic visual language. The screening invites a concentrated examination of mental illness, social exclusion, and the difficult return to a shared life.

A Father Between Illness, Guilt, and Artistic Expression

The film follows Jelena Ilić's father, who was placed in forensic psychiatry after a drug-induced psychosis and is nearing his release. For the director, this creates an emotionally contradictory process: She encounters him as a daughter, as a person with legitimate fears, and as an artist who admires his creative power.

The illness does not appear as an abstract diagnosis but as an experience that shapes family relationships, memories, and identity. Ilić approaches her father with documentary precision, without resolving the ambiguity between love, hurt, and responsibility.

Documentary Film Between Painting, Photography, and Animation

The film gains a special aesthetic quality through the integration of photographs, paintings, sculptures, and a collaboratively developed comic. The father's artworks become visible traces of inner states and open up access to a world that cannot be fully captured in medical terms.

The expressionistic imagery moves between Art Brut and Neo-Expressionism. Enhanced by animation and personal video footage, a multifaceted cinematic installation emerges, intertwining images of memory, the present, and imaginative spaces. Warmth, humor, and a peculiar visual rhythm protect the film from voyeuristic observation.

Cultural Education Through an Open Examination of Work

A Disease Like a Poem opens an important perspective on mental health, regulatory custody, and social reintegration. The artistic experience lies not in simple answers but in the aesthetic experience of a film that allows contradictory feelings to coexist.

Jelena Ilić's debut has been awarded, among others, the Audience Award for Documentary Film at the Max Ophüls Prize Film Festival and other festival awards. The recognition points to the special connection of personal storytelling, cinematic form, and social relevance.

Conclusion: An Intense Cinema Experience in Bielefeld

The screening at Kamera promises an immersive encounter with a documentary film that places illness, family, and art into an unusually sensitive relationship. Art enthusiasts, film lovers, and visitors interested in cultural education will experience a powerful aesthetic examination of vulnerability, memory, and the possibility of new closeness. This special artistic experience is worth the trip to the cinema.