We Are Next Of Kin

One day in 1996 everything changes for 13-year-old Johann. For the first time in his life, he experiences true fear when his father is kidnapped. Johann and his mother are forced to go through 33 days of a living nightmare. After the police move into his family's home, it increasingly seems that their investigative skills leave much to be desired. Desperate letters from his father reach Johann between various failed attempts at money drops. It gradually becomes clear that his father's life can only be saved if the family doesn't follow the police's lead. The story of the kidnapping of Jan Philipp Reemstma, one of the richest men in Germany, from the perspective of the family. Based on the autobiographical book written by his son Johann Scheerer.

Hans-Christian Schmid was born in Altötting in 1965
and lives in Berlin today. Following his studies at
film school in Munich, he graduated in scriptwriting
from USC in Los Angeles. Schmid’s films include 23,
CRAZY, DISTANT LIGHTS, REQUIEM and the international
co-production STORM. In 2004, he founded
the production company 23/5, which has produced
five films so far: his own REQUIEM, THE WONDROUS
WORLD OF LAUNDRY, and STORM as well as AND
ALONG COME TOURISTS by Robert Thalheim and
THE EDGE by Géraldine Bajard. Schmid’s films have
all been invited to various national and international
festivals and have received several awards.

SELECTED FILMOGRAPHY

2009 STORM (director, co-writer, producer)
2008 THE WONDROUS WORLD OF LAUNDRY
(feature documentary; director, producer)
2006 REQUIEM (director, producer)
2003 DISTANT LIGHTS (director, co-writer)
2000 CRAZY (director, co-writer)
1998 23 (director, co-writer)