Private Project

Past Midnight

"Writing is dangerous," the young writer knows. It's after midnight in a bar somewhere in Germany. "Drinking is dangerous," warns the bartender. This realization doesn't deter either man from embarking on an adventure in which cocktails are supposed to influence their writing. However, the bartender's questions are at least as strange as his recipes. While the author expects a Hemingway miracle, the unexpected actually happens.

German language / Subtitles: English, French, Italian, German, English CC / German CC

  • Jörg Liemann
    Director
  • Volker Meyer-Dabisch
    Key Cast
  • Robert Speidel
    Key Cast
  • Corinna Buchholz
    Key Cast
  • Jörg Liemann
    Writer
  • Verena Busche
    Cinematography
  • Sarita Knabe
    Assistant Director
  • Anke Ebeling
    Costume Design
  • Caroline Merz
    Set Design
  • Verena Busche
    Editing
  • Jörg Liemann
    Music
  • Verena Busche
    Production Manager
  • Simon Halaski
    Set Photography
  • LoBu Productions
    Producer
  • Verena Busche & Jörg Liemann Film
    Producer
  • Project Title (Original Language):
    Past Midnight
  • Project Type:
    Experimental, Short
  • Genres:
    Arthouse, Dramatic Comedy Noir
  • Runtime:
    10 minutes 14 seconds
  • Completion Date:
    June 17, 2025
  • Country of Origin:
    Germany
  • Country of Filming:
    Germany
  • Language:
    German
  • Shooting Format:
    Digital, 4K
  • Aspect Ratio:
    2:35.1
  • Film Color:
    Black & White
  • First-time Filmmaker:
    No
  • Student Project:
    No
  • Digital Cinema Package:
    Unavailable
  • Selected: Berlin Short Film Festival @ Babylon
    Berlin
    Germany
    August 9, 2025
    Official Selection
Director Biography - Jörg Liemann

In all his literary work, Jörg Liemann displays a strong affinity for dialogue. He has published crime novels and thrillers with Goldmann and Aufbau publishing houses. As a co-author, he contributed to the nonfiction book "Steven Spielberg – Tiefenscharfe Analysen" (In-Depth Analyses) as well as the short story collection "Bar Codes" (whose title makes a cameo appearance in the film). Even back in school, he initiated Super 8 film projects and had a passion for celluloid. He enjoys placing creative processes at the heart of his writing—and now, also at the center of his first short film.

Add Director Biography
Director Statement

Jörg Liemann:
"Robert Speidel, fresh from the North German coast, is the perfect choice to play this young writer. Volker Meyer-Dabisch, the mentor behind the bar counter, is not only a comedian and director but also played the lead role in "Caveman" for decades. Corinna Buchholz, too, is a true multi-talent: singer, cabaret artist, and psychotherapist.

The collaboration with Verena Busche, of course, was especially close. Back in 2014, we co-wrote the stage play "HilfReich", and she later adapted my short story "Gesinnungshemmer" for the stage at Berlin’s Brotfabrik theater—in which a character also searches for new material for a book and becomes entangled in bizarre thoughts and situations.

In 2019, we co-produced the film version of my treatment "Die Schriftstellerin", which is now available on Prime Video. Without her incredible wealth of experience—as an actress, director, camera acting coach, and production manager—I would never have dared to take on the challenge of filming such a delicate and improbable story in this format."

Trivia:
- The bar where filming took place in late January 2025 is an active cocktail bar located in Berlin-Mitte, near Friedrichstraße station. It’s housed in one of the city’s characteristic S-Bahn arches (built in 1872–1882), with local and long-distance trains rumbling overhead.
- Most of the bottle labels were specially designed for the film. Among them is a spirit called Bar Codes—also the title and cover of a short story collection co-authored by director Jörg Liemann and Jörg Breitenfeld.
- Jörg Breitenfeld (also co-author of "Steven Spielberg – Tiefenscharfe Analysen") makes a cameo appearance as an extra, sitting with his wife on the left side of the bar.
- The giraffe motif—two necks entwined—which the writer sketches in the film, also appears on the bartender’s ring (a creation by Anke Ebeling). It can be interpreted as a symbol of the author encountering himself.
- The nude portrait of Rembrandt’s wife Saskia, mentioned in the film, almost certainly does not exist.
- “What is that …” — the bartender’s opening line — is identical to the first words of Thomas Mann’s novel Buddenbrooks (1901).
- The Hemingway articles referenced, written for the Toronto Star, were published under the original title Dateline Toronto (1920–1924).
- The citrus fruits on the silver tray evoke the feel of a classical still life painting.
- Corinna Buchholz’s vocal performance was improvised.