Clemens Meyer (writer)

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Clemens Meyer at the Leipzig Book Fair 2010

Clemens Meyer (born August 20, 1977 in Halle / Saale ) is a German writer .

Life

Meyer grew up in Anger-Crottendorf , a working-class district in the east of Leipzig . He is the grandson of the artists Otto and Gertraud Möhwald . His father is a nurse and was active in the East CDU during the GDR era . His mother Regina Meyer is a curative educator, worked in a church kindergarten during the GDR era, took part in the Monday demonstrations in 1989 and, together with other GDR civil rights activists, favored the " third way " of a reformed GDR through the fall of the Wall . With his mother and sister, Clemens Meyer also regularly attended the Monday demonstrations and environmental services in Leipzig.

Meyer came across fiction through his father's extensive library . During his school days he worked in the AG (working group) young reciters and in the trombone choir of his parish, where he played the second trumpet.

From 1990/91 Meyer experienced his youth in the post-reunification period as “dance on the rubble”, which he found in his novel As we dream - which contains autobiographical references - with petty crime, alcohol, drugs, violence, prison stays in Zeithain , tattoos and self-organized techno parties describes. After graduating from high school in 1996, Meyer worked, among other things, as a construction worker .

From 1998 to 2003 Meyer studied at the German Literature Institute in Leipzig , interrupted by a stay in the Zeithain youth detention center. He financed his studies as a security guard , movers, forklift drivers and with scholarships. In the seminars he only put a few of his texts up for debate, but learned more through discussions about the texts of others.

As a pupil and student he worked in simple jobs such as B. Construction workers. The experiences from the receipt of social assistance , unemployment benefit II as well as the partial material poverty up to the power cut during the first years as a writer are also the basis of his works. After Meyer had finished his first novel When we dreamed and the search for a publisher was initially unsuccessful, he turned to the writer Sten Nadolny . This gave his debut a breakthrough. Nadolny's literary agent, who was also working for Meyer during this time, persuaded him to delete a female role from the book and sold the manuscript to S. Fischer Verlag .

In addition to his work as a writer, Meyer was a visiting lecturer at the Leipzig Institute of Literature in 2014 . In the summer semester of 2015, Clemens Meyer gave the poetry lectures at Frankfurt University under the title Der Untergang der Äkschn GmbH .

Clemens Meyer, 2011

At the Munich Literature Festival 2014, Meyer curated the annual forum: Authors under the title In Danger and Great Need, the middle path brings death to which he u. a. Jonathan Meese , Jürgen Ploog , Thomas Kuczynski , Ulrich Peltzer , Thomas Rosenlöcher , invited the actors Holger Stockhaus and Aurel Manthey, with whom he staged events such as Danton or Death in the Jungle Camp and DSDSW - Germany is looking for the super car over 7 days . The event (reading and discussion) was perceived as highly experimental.

Clemens Meyer is married and lives in Leipzig in the eastern district of Anger-Crottendorf . He is a passionate fan of horse racing . He owns several racehorses.

Literary work

prose

In 2006, Clemens Meyer published his debut novel As Wir Träumten . This describes the life of young men in Leipzig's Reudnitz working-class district in the 1990s and is colored autobiographically. The Eastside techno club actually existed in Leipzig-Reudnitz and Meyer played a significant role there. The novel was praised by the press as the “long-awaited turning novel”, was perceived as a “literary sensation” and was nominated in 2006 for the Leipzig Book Fair Prize. Clemens Meyer's second publication from 2008 - The Night, the Lights - is a collection of short stories.

Meyer's third book, Gewalten , was published in March 2010 . A diary .

Meyer's novel Im Stein came out on August 22, 2013 . This deals with sex work, forced prostitution and their capitalist-economic organization in a Leipzig-like city in the new federal states of the 1990s. He was inspired by newspaper articles - "Influenzen", as he describes inspirations. Meyer researched the topic for 15 years and specifically worked on the book for about 8 years. He moved to work on the novel a. a. numerous studies, biographies, statistics, interviews, materials, books such as B. The capital of Karl Marx , the lexicon of prostitution , books by Machiavelli and the game Red Light Tycoon . Parallels between the novel and the reality in Leipzig in the 1990s can be found in the Sachsensumpf affair . These are particularly striking in the chapter The Columbus Butterfly , in which the forced prostitution of minors is discussed through the description of Donald Duck comics . The story shown is very similar to that of Mandy Kopp , who was forced into prostitution in the Jasmin children's brothel in Leipzig in the 1990s as a 16-year-old . For the novel Im Stein , Meyer was named “Pascha of the month” in 2013 by the feminist magazine Emma , which rejects prostitution. In contrast to Emma , Meyer differentiates in his novel - as do sex-positive feminists and feminist sex workers - between forced prostitution and sex work. Meyer has a lot of empathy and space in his novel for pimps and suitors (respectful and disrespectful). What was valued about the novel Im Stein was that Meyer did not sit up with male fantasies and did not romanticize the work of sex workers . However, Meyer always wanted, as he explains on his publisher's website, the mythological as part of the novel. This is how the character Arnold Kraushaar becomes Mister Orpheus. Surrealistic dream sequences are just as much a part of the aesthetics as seemingly realistic interviews with the characters in the novel. The novel was on the shortlist for the German Book Prize and was awarded the renowned Bremen Literature Prize. Katy Derbyshire's English-language translation made it onto the longlist of the British Man Booker International Prize in 2017 .

Meyer's works have been translated into numerous languages, including Croatian, English, French, Italian and Swedish.

Theater texts and adaptations of texts for the theater

The theatrical version of As Wir Träumten was premiered on April 13, 2008 at the Leipziger Schauspiel, arranged by Armin Petras and Carmen Wolfram , directed by Armin Petras. The roles of the male protagonists in the play were exclusively occupied by female actresses in order to "undermine the machismo of the original from the start".

The theatrical version of the tales from Meyer's Die Nacht, die Lichter was premiered in March 2010 at the Central Theater in Leipzig, directed by Sascha Hawemann .

Meyer wrote the theater text Sirk the East - The Dream of Hollywood a year later - again together with Hawemann . The play was premiered on May 20, 2011 at the Central Theater in Leipzig .

Stall Talk , Clemens Meyer's improvisational talk format with guests in the Leipzig Central Theater , took place on March 2, 2012 with the first edition of Die Sendung mit der Maus or In the Heart of Darkness . Further events, u. a. with the titles all happiness on earth lies in the flesh of horses , Rambo cooks - open air , love - 1. porn, 2. mourning, 3. happiness , the end or best of dying , man is only man where he plays , Boxing and passion for stamps , took place until the change of artistic director in June 2013.

On April 25, 2013, the theater adaptation of violence was premiered at the Leipzig Central Theater, directed by Sascha Hawemann . In April 2015, Im Stein was premiered at the Schauspiel Stuttgart under the direction of Sebastian Hartmann, at whose Centraltheater Meyer worked regularly . Meyer was a guest at the Schillertage in Mannheim in June 2015 with the Wallstone Part IV project .

In January 2018 Meyer wrote a radio essay for SWR2 entitled Im Netz der Spinnenfrau. Or 10 attempts via the NSU , in which he also has cameo appearances as a speaker.

Scripts

Together with the Leipzig filmmaker Thomas Stuber , Clemens Meyer wrote the script for the feature films Herbert (nominated for the German Script Award ) and In den Gänge (German Script Award 2015) as well as for the TV film Tatort: ​​Attack on Guard 08 . Thomas Stuber directed all three works.

Publications

Journalistic texts

Meyer publishes texts in various newspapers and magazines: in the features section of the FAZ , in Die Welt or Der Freitag . He has written reviews (including on Dan Brown ), wrote about chess boxing, FC Sachsen Leipzig . Meyer made interviews with his grandfather, the visual artist Otto Möhwald , and with his literary mentor Sten Nadolny .

Meyer wrote an autobiographical text about his family's activities during the time of the fall of the Wall and their reception by the media.

On the occasion of the publication of his novel Im Stein , he published a text in which he demands respect for sex workers who regard the sex services they perform as self-determined work.

Meyer also worked as a columnist in Die Zeit in the series Ostkurve and as an annual review writer.

Visual arts

As the fictional person Günther Meyer , Clemens Meyer and Uwe-Karsten Günther, gallery owner and master student at the University of Graphic and Book Art (Leipzig), work collectively in the field of fine arts. In the Museum of Fine Arts (Leipzig), a room installation by Günther Meyer was represented as part of the exhibition Weltenschöpfer - Richard Wagner - Max Klinger - Karl May from May 15 to September 15, 2013.

Film adaptations of texts by Clemens Meyers

In 2012 the Leipzig filmmaker Thomas Stuber filmed Von Hunden und Pferde , a short story by Clemens Meyers. The short film received a Silver Student Academy Award for best foreign short film. Stuber also brought Meyer's short story of the same name from the narrative volume Die Nacht, die Lichter as a feature film with Franz Rogowski , Sandra Hüller and Peter Kurth in the main roles in 2018 under the title In den Gängen . In addition to Stuber, Meyer was also involved as a screenwriter, which brought both of them the German Screenplay Award in 2015 .

Meyer's debut novel As Wir Träumten was adapted for the screen in 2014 by director Andreas Dresen and had its premiere at the 65th Berlinale ; the screenplay was written by Wolfgang Kohlhaase . Meyer makes a brief cameo as a police officer in the film . Meyer appreciates the cinematic implementation of his novel and speaks of a pull and of "that the film also develops its own visual power, which one could hardly avoid". "I believe that when we dreamed the child found two very good adoptive fathers in Dresen and in Kohlhaase ... The novel is nevertheless the novel."

Awards

Secondary literature

  • Nikolas Buck: The New German Big City Novel - Clemens Meyers Im Stein . In: Trends in contemporary German-language literature. Edited by Simon Hansen a. Jill Thielsen. Frankfurt a. M .: Peter Lang 2019 (= contributions to literature and literary studies of the 20th and 21st centuries), pp. 37–59.
  • Martin Jörg Schäfer: The intensity of dreams. Clemens Meyer's Poetics of the Cinema. In: Lili, magazine for linguistics and literary studies, issue 170 "Staging of 'intensity' and 'liveliness' in contemporary literature", edited by Martin Jörg Schäfer and Niels Werber, autumn 2013

Web links

Commons : Clemens Meyer  - Collection of pictures, videos and audio files

Individual evidence

  1. ^ Matthias Schmidt: From Anger-Crottendorf into the world. Arrived in "shit literature" - Clemens Meyer turns 40 In: MDR Kultur , August 17, 2017.
  2. ↑ a b Clemens Meyer: "The gray decline has always stimulated me", in: Der Freitag, January 30, 2013
  3. ↑ a b c d Clemens Meyer: Memories of the Great Disappearance, in: Cicero, February 9, 2015 ( Memento from April 2, 2015 in the Internet Archive )
  4. ↑ a b c the daily newspaper of June 21, 2006: Interview with Clemens Meyer
  5. ↑ MDR KULTUR: "When we dreamed": With Clemens Meyer through Leipzig | MDR CULTURE. February 27, 2015, accessed May 2, 2019 .
  6. ↑ a b c Julia Löhr: A worker in the literature business. In: FAZ, May 10, 2010
  7. ^ A b c Julia Schaaf: The magician of Leipzig-East. April 6, 2006
  8. ↑ Article by Clemens Meyer in the FAZ
  9. ^ Former visiting professorships, in: Website of the University of Leipzig, Leipzig Institute for Literature
  10. ↑ Wolfgang Rihm, Dominik Graf and Clemens Meyer at poetry lectures, in: Frankfurter Rundschau ( Memento from April 2, 2015 in the Internet Archive )
  11. ^ Clemens Meyer: East German Invasion. Die Zeit 49/2014, serial Ostkurve , November 27, 2014
  12. ↑ Katrin Hillgruber: Literature, my cocaine. Clemens Meyer at the Munich Literature Festival. In: Tagesspiegel, November 24, 2014
  13. ↑ Gerrit Bartels: "I see myself as individualists", in: TAZ, June 21, 2006
  14. ↑ a b c Volker Weidermann: The world is colorful and red and no longer right. In: FAZ, August 19, 2013
  15. ↑ Gerrit Bartels: "Prostitutes fascinate me." An interview with Clemens Meyer, in: Tagesspiegel, October 7, 2013
  16. ^ Kolja Mensing: Trainspotting in Leipzig-East. In: Deutschlandradio Kultur, February 23, 2006
  17. ↑ Florian Gathmann and Jenny Hoch: writer Clemens Meyer. "Lower class - what is that supposed to be?", In: Spiegel, February 26, 2008
  18. ↑ Clemens Meyer in conversation with Wend Kässens, literary critic and member of the foundation's board of trustees. ( Memento from February 2, 2015 in the Internet Archive ) In: Tagewerk 2008, March 3, 2010, website of the Rinke Foundation
  19. ↑ Richard Kämmerlings: Overdose chases the golden whip. In FAZ, March 17, 2010
  20. ↑ Kerstin Eschrich: Disgust, money and mouthwash. Clemens Meyer gives prostitutes a voice in his readable novel "Im Stein". In: Jungle World No. 42, October 17, 2013
  21. ↑ Clemens Meyer: What inspired me to write. Author special. In: Website of the S. Fischer publishing house
  22. ↑ Interview with Clemens Meyer. In: Clemens Meyer's website
  23. ↑ Jan Pfaff: In the big city. In: Friday, October 5, 2013
  24. ↑ Jürgen Verdofsky: Clemens Meyer's "Im Stein": Sachsensumpf. In: Badische Zeitung, September 7, 2013
  25. ↑ Andreas Platthaus: At the Book Fair 2013 - Clemens Meyer in conversation. In: FAZ, October 12, 2013
  26. ^ Pascha: Clemens Meyer, author, in: Emma, ​​November 2, 2013
  27. ↑ a b Clemens Meyer: Finally listen to the whores! In: Die Welt, November 22, 2013
  28. ↑ Gerrit Bartels: The coldest trade in the world. In: Tagesspiegel, 23 August 2013
  29. ↑ Ralph Gambihler: Wild Zone Children. When we were dreaming - Armin Petras relies on the genius loci and dramatizes Clemens Meyer. In: Nachtkritik, April 13, 2008
  30. ^ Matthias Schmidt: Rhapsody of the antiheroes. The night, the lights - Clemens Meyer's novel lands late hits in Sascha Hawemann's UA. In: Nachtkritik, March 25, 2010
  31. ↑ Ralph Gambihler: The greed for oil. Sirk the East - The Dream of Hollywood (UA) - Clemens Meyer and Sascha Hawemann cross Hollywood with East Leipzig. In: Nachtkritik, May 20, 2011
  32. ↑ Film, that is blood, that is tears, violence, hatred, death and love, in: Lose Blätter Collection No. 3, ed. from Centraltheater Leipzig ( Memento from April 2, 2015 in the Internet Archive )
  33. ↑ Moritz Arand: Laughter and factual stories under the sign of the mouse. In: Leipzig Almanch, March 12, 2012
  34. ↑ Moritz Arand: "It was an experiment that has never been done in Leipzig." In: Leipzig Almanch, September 6, 2013
  35. ↑ Mathias Schulze: I'm still there, you pigs! Violence - In Leipzig, Sascha Haweman ironizes and wreaths the present author Clemens Meyer. In: Nachtkritik, April 25, 2013
  36. ↑ Tobias Prüwer: The old dog and his master. With Clemens Meyer in the corner bar: »Gewalten« in the Centraltheater. In: Kreuzer, April 27, 2013
  37. ↑ http://www.schillertage.de/stueck_details.php?SID=2222
  38. ↑ Thomas Stuber and Clemens Meyer receive the German Screenplay Award, in: die Welt, February 6, 2015
  39. ↑ Clemens Meyer: The night, the lights. Audiobook, in: Literaturport.de
  40. ^ Clemens Meyer, Vita, in: Literaturport
  41. ↑ Eberhard Falcke: Clemens Meyer: "Die silent Trabanten" key moments of a brief happiness , deutschlandfunk.de, accessed May 11, 2017
  42. ↑ Clemens Meyer: Time means longing. In: Friday, May 25, 2012 , accessed on July 12, 2018.
  43. ↑ Series: "Ostkurve", in: Zeit online
  44. ↑ Clemens Meyer: Fake News: Please comment now . In: The time . December 29, 2016, ISSN  0044-2070 ( zeit.de [accessed December 30, 2016]).
  45. ^ Museum of Fine Arts Leipzig: Richard Wagner - Max Klinger - Karl May. World Creator. Exhibition, May 16 - September 15, 2013 ( Memento from March 4, 2016 in the Internet Archive )
  46. ↑ Spiegel Online from July 16, 2013: Andreas Dresen filmed "When we dreamed"
  47. ↑ Andreas Platthaus: End station Sehnsuchtsblick. In: FAZ, February 10, 2015
  48. ^ ZDF aspekte: Clemens Meyer on the film "As we dreamed", in: ZDF aspects, Youtubekanal des ZDF, February 11, 2015
  49. ↑ Clemens Meyer on the film adaptation of "As we dreamed", in: artour, MDR, YouTube channel of the MDR Mitteldeutscher Rundfunk, February 6, 2015
  50. ↑ Clemens Meyer: Acceptance speech for the award of the Bremen Literature Prize 2014, January 27, 2014, In: Website of the Rudolf-Alexander-Schröder-Foundation ( Memento from April 2, 2015 in the Internet Archive )
  51. ↑ Prize winner 2016: Clemens Meyer ( Memento from September 25, 2015 in the Internet Archive )
  52. ↑ fnp of June 8, 2018
  53. ↑ deutschlandfunk from June 9, 2018
personal data
SURNAME Meyer, Clemens
BRIEF DESCRIPTION German writer
DATE OF BIRTH 20th August 1977
PLACE OF BIRTH Halle on the Saale