A Cinematic Journey Through Austria’s Care Landscape: The OIS Center of the Ludwig Boltzmann Gesellschaft Supports Documentary Film
On November 28, 2024, the documentary “Zwischen uns Arbeit” (Between US Work) by Elaine Goldberg, created as part of the “Open Innovation in Science (OIS) Impact Lab Caring Communities for Future,” had its team premiere during a preview at the closing event.
Care work is seldom visible, takes place in the background, is underpaid, and is predominantly performed by women. Most importantly, it is undervalued. This is the overarching message of the documentary “Zwischen uns Arbeit” (Between Us Work).
Directed by Elaine Goldberg, the documentary follows three transdisciplinary research projects that were funded under the innovative funding program OIS Impact Lab “Caring Communities for Future.” Over the past two years, researchers and representatives from civil society initiatives and municipal administrations have collaboratively explored and developed sustainable concepts for caring communities, known as Caring Communities, in Austria.
Cinematic Journey Through Austria’s Care Landscape
The documentary is a cinematic journey through Austria’s care landscape, reflecting on different realities of caregiving and observing various forms of care. The film crew posed questions about the Austrian healthcare system and our coexistence: How do family caregivers cope? What situations do 24-hour caregivers face? What do people with disabilities need in social spaces to be able to participate in a community?
In conversations with researchers, caregivers, and activists, it becomes clear, according to the film team, that they have much to say to policymakers regarding a societal reassessment of care work, potential reforms, and even the “complete collapse of the care system.”
A Voice for Care Experts
The film aims to give voice to care experts and highlights the interdependencies that enable our functioning as a society and our relationships with the social environment. To provide the film with academic depth, the project was accompanied by Assoc. Prof. Dr. Sanderien Verstappen from the Vienna Visual Anthropology Lab at the Institute of Social and Cultural Anthropology at the University of Vienna.
The film project, which is currently being submitted to numerous film festivals, emerged from a collaboration between the LBG OIS Center and the Vienna Visual Anthropology Lab at the Institute of Cultural and Social Anthropology at the University of Vienna. The film was funded by the LBG OIS Center.
Closing Event
On November 28, 2024, more than 80 project participants, attendees of project activities, funders, and invited guests celebrated the successful conclusion of the OIS Impact Lab “Caring Communities for Future” at Belvedere 21. During the closing event, the film “Zwischen uns Arbeit” (Between Us Work) by Elaine Goldberg was presented for the first time. The documentary accompanied three transdisciplinary projects within the framework of the OIS Impact Lab “Caring Communities for Future.”