Private Project

Houses of straw - 10 years later

10 years after her first film on strawbale building, filmmaker Heidi Snel takes us on another journey through Germany´s strawbale landscape. We discover new developments such as improved post and beam structures, prefabrication of wall elements and the certified building product "Building Bale". We follow the building of the biggest strawbale building in Germany: an office building with 5 storeys of prefabricated strawbale walls! Next to that, we visit some of the houses that were built 10 years ago: how are the owners doing in their strawbale homes?

Building with strawbales has become a serious alternative in ecological building. Straw creates a healthy living environment, and it saves our climate in multiple ways: straw stores carbon dioxide, it needs very little energy in production and it has great insulation values.

  • Heidi Snel
    Director
  • Heidi Snel
    Producer
  • Project Title (Original Language):
    Moderner Strohballenbau - Stroh im Kopf Teil 2
  • Project Type:
    Documentary
  • Runtime:
    1 hour 3 minutes
  • Completion Date:
    February 1, 2014
  • Production Budget:
    50,000 EUR
  • Country of Origin:
    Germany
  • Language:
    English
  • Shooting Format:
    Digital
  • Aspect Ratio:
    16:9
  • Film Color:
    Color
  • First-time Filmmaker:
    No
  • Student Project:
    No
Director Biography - Heidi Snel

Heidi Snel, born in 1970, directs and procuces documentaries about ecological issues since 15 years. After her studies of theater, film and TV and education as editor in Cogogne, Germany and Amsterdam, Netherlands, she founded her own production company named ÖKOFILM (Ecofilm).

ÖKOFILM produces and distributes films that look for sustainable solutions in times of climate change and diminishing resources. Finding the chances and creativitiy in these challenges instead of creating fear and hopelessness – that´s interesting! New approaches in agriculture, ecological building materials, new ways of living together, finding a sustainable way of life on this planet, that´s what ÖKOFILM cares about.

Add Director Biography
Director Statement

In a documentary about the state of our world, I always long for good ideas, for alternatives. If there´s only despair, it doens´t invite me to live this life fully!