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Diese Alten Punks / These Old Punks

Is punk dead? Divided by the wall, Berlin's punk movements in the 1970s and -80 used music to push back against authoritarianism. Decades after the punk promise of “no future,” Diese Alten Punks uses never-before-seen interviews of punk rockers from both the East and West to describe a truly unique time in alternative history. The youth culture lit a match to the slow burning dynamite of authoritarianism — the shockwaves of which can still be felt to this day.

  • Courtney Lassiter
    Director
  • James Burton Evans
    Composer
  • Mark Reeder
    Key Cast
  • Wolfgang Müller
    Key Cast
  • Andreas "Andy" Heske
    Key Cast
  • Marko Marusic Eckert
    Key Cast
  • Natalie Petra
    Key Cast
  • Silke "Kat" Klug
    Key Cast
  • Alexander Pehlemann
    Key Cast
  • Horst Steiff
    Key Cast
  • Völker
    Key Cast
  • Mutti
    Key Cast
  • Nolti
    Key Cast
  • Project Title (Original Language):
    Diese Alten Punks
  • Project Type:
    Documentary, Short, Student
  • Genres:
    Drama, Historical, Thriller, Music, Documentary
  • Runtime:
    28 minutes 27 seconds
  • Completion Date:
    May 1, 2025
  • Production Budget:
    4,500 USD
  • Country of Origin:
    United States
  • Country of Filming:
    Germany
  • Language:
    English, German
  • Shooting Format:
    Digital
  • Aspect Ratio:
    16:9
  • Film Color:
    Color
  • First-time Filmmaker:
    Yes
  • Student Project:
    Yes - Davidson College
  • Digital Cinema Package:
    Unavailable
  • Berlin Punkfilmfest
    Berlin, Germany
    Germany
    October 24, 2025
    Berlin Premiere
    Official Selection
  • Free & Easy Festival
    Munich
    Germany
    August 9, 2025
    European Premiere
    Invited Filmmaker
  • LA Punk Film Festival
    Los Angeles
    United States
    October 16, 2025
    Official Selection
Director Biography - Courtney Lassiter

Courtney Lassiter was born and raised in rural North Carolina, the place and time which served to shape her formative years. Since then, Lassiter has studied as a multidisciplinary artist at Davidson College with a double major in Studio Art and Film, Media, & Digital Studies. Combining her interests in mixed media traditional artwork with the digital landscape has allowed her to document not only her personal mythology and life experiences, but also the lives of those beyond her. Her current projects have included photographing and documenting under-researched Ottoman-era architecture in Bosnia and Herzegovina, as well as her first documentary film on the punk movement in 1980s Berlin. Her current creative practice has been greatly informed by international perspectives gained through travel for her studies.

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Director Statement

When I first began taking German for my language credit at Davidson College, I never could have imagined the slippery slope into urban culture, grungy guitars, and powerful politics I'd find myself on. Just a year later and inspired by my studies of the language and alternative culture, I filmed, directed, and edited my very first documentary film Diese Alten Punks ("These Old Punks" in English).

I grew up as an emo kid in rural North Carolina infatuated with punk rock and the aesthetics behind it. Reaching adulthood meant the chance to live my life on my own terms, as creatively and unconventionally as I desired. Once I began pursuing my degree in the arts, the abundance of funding and resources available at my college for young creatives such as myself inspired me to take action. I applied for a grant from Davidson's Dean Rusk International Studies Program to fund my research travel, and the rest is history. Today, I find myself deeply interested in subcultures, and the ways their music and politics shape our youth. The Cold War-era divide in 1970s and -80s Berlin is what I believe sets its punk movement apart from others in the world at this time, given respective sects in the East and West both rebelled against the opposite political systems they deemed improper. Decades after the original movement, it's inspiring how so many former punks still hold steadfast to their personal ideals of anarchy and determination. In today's political climate, the story at the heart of Diese Alten Punks remains hauntingly relevant — that with heart, power, and perhaps a lot of guitar, we can transform "no future" into OUR future.