Thomas Wallner

This documentary tells the story of great love, bitter disappointments and self-doubts - but most of all of courage. The courage to take risks, try something new and be yourself - no matter what age. The film dives deeply into the exceptional and heart-warming stories of a group of transsexuals and drag queens in their sixties and seventies, who summon up their bravery to take to the stage one last time. For two years they have been touring in five continents, basking in the success of a spectacular show called "Gardenia", directed by Alain Platel and Frank Van Laecke. Now, as the show comes to a close, the glamorous aging performers must leave the limelight and go home to the quiet lives they left behind.

MOZARTBALLS is a light-hearted tribute to Mozart and explores what he symbolizes in our age. The film features curious characters that embody the spirit of Mozart - from a retired Swiss school teacher obsessed by all things Mozart, to an ex-pop musician in Oklahoma who believes that her body is actually inhabited by Mozart's spirit; from a computer genius in California whose software has created a new Mozart cello concerto, to an Austrian astronaut who carried a score of "The Magic Flute" and delicious chocolate 'Mozartkugeln' into space. These are the individuals who inhabit MOZARTBALLS and through their strange and, at times, very moving stories, the viewer will be exposed to the liveliness, the magic and the obsession that Moart has become to so many music fans today. For them, Mozart defines the very essence of beauty in music, but he has become something more than that. Mozart is an icon, and for many he is still very much alive!

Filmmaker Larry Weinstein traces the life and work of composer Hanns Eisler, one of the greatest composers of the 20th century.