JANIS WESTPHAL, born in 1988 in Thuringia, studied journalism, communication sciences and history, as well as the MA Global History in Gießen and Berlin. Coming from photography, he shot his first short documentary film during an internship in Tanzania in 2011 and immediately lost his heart to filmmaking. He then worked for a television production company for three years, developing new content for internationally renowned broadcasters such as ZDF, WDR and Discovery Channel. From 2014 to 2018, he studied directing and documentary film at the self-organised filmArche in Berlin. In 2016, Janis founded the SEVENPEAKS Filmmakers Collective. Since then, he has produced and conceived several image and advertising films for NGOs and non-profit organisations and has won three major public film grants for his independent projects. His short films BOLZMANN and DREYFUS DREI (co-directed with Ella Dreyfus), completed in 2021, were shown at many international film festivals and - in the case of the latter - in museums and cultural institutions. In 2023, he completed his feature film debut with the documentary ONE HAND THE OTHER (co-directed with Lenna Sophie Fichter). In the same year, he completed the second part of his short film trilogy about symptoms of "masculinity", mental problems and the repression of these.  Janis also works as a lecturer for documentary film and media education, represents filmArche as a public affairs spokesperson and is chairman of VorFilmFestival e.V., an association that aims to promote short films as supporting films in regular cinema screenings. Studying at the ifs since 2023.