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Corporate film for DKMS Lars and his family.

A cancer diagnosis never hits just one person. For the DKMS, Lars and his family talk about what support during cancer really means.

Image Film Portrait Hamburg · 2022

A cancer diagnosis never affects just one person.

Lars receives the diagnosis of blood cancer. With it, not only his life changes, but also that of his partner, his friends and his parents. Suddenly everyone is needed, for years, twice and three times over.

For DKMS, we shot the perspective. The focus is not on the sufferer's struggle, but on the dedication of the people around him. This film says thank you to them.

Lars looks into the camera in a park in Hamburg and smiles.
Lars and his partner laughingly play a board game at the table in their apartment. Lars playing basketball together with friends outdoors in Hamburg.

„A film about support can only emerge when trust prevails on set.“

Christian Martin Schäfer

Christian Martin Schäfer

Founder & Director · ROCC Film

Why we changed the perspective.

For eight years, we've portrayed people for DKMS. It was almost always about the fight of those affected. With Lars, we turned the perspective around. We met him in Hamburg, in his apartment and outside by the water. His partner and two close friends joined in.

Lars stays clear and positive about it. A five percent chance of survival, he says, and that's simply part of it. In Isselhorst near Gütersloh, he organized a donor registration drive — over a thousand people signed up. Lars himself found his donor because others got tested before him, and received the life-saving stem cell donation.

„There are no words for that, except thank you.“

Seen in the spot.

Lars sits in his apartment and talks about his illness. His partner and two close friends also have their say. Their voices continue as voiceover over cutaway shots: basketball, a games night, shared laughter.

Lars looks into the camera in a park in Hamburg and smiles.

01 · Lars, outside in Hamburg

Lars and his partner laughingly play a board game at the table in their apartment.

02 · Game night with his partner

Lars playing basketball together with friends outdoors in Hamburg.

03 · Basketball with friends

Couple viewed from behind looking over a railing at a canal in the city

04 · Together on the way

More than a medical history

Anyone working for DKMS tells of life and death. That tolerates no gimmickry. It needs calm, closeness and genuine listening.

For eight years, we were able to do this for DKMS. Lars and his loved ones are one of many stories that have shaped us. It shows what a film can achieve: not putting the illness at the centre, but the people who stick together.

What ROCC Film took on for the DKMS.

DKMS brings the people, we turn their story into a film.

01 Developed the concept and change of perspective
02 Worked out the story with Lars and his family.
03 Organized and coordinated the shoot
04 Direction, camera and camera assistance on set
05 Conducted interviews and kept them on the audio level
06 Editing and post-production
07 Final delivery in several formats
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