About

Cocoa Film is a Berlin-based production company founded in 2018. With many years of experience in the international documentary field, Carolin Neubauer and Christian Schidlowski joined forces to realize their vision of a boutique documentary production house.

Cocoa Film stands for high-quality documentary filmmaking. Our hearts beat for the wonders and ambiguities this world has to offer. With outstanding images and strong stories, we aim to create programme that touches the audience on a deeper level.

We’ve just finished producing a three-part ARTE découverte series about Thailand and are in development of several series and one-offs for the international market.

Team

Christian Schidlowski

Producer and Creative Director

Christian has been working as a documentary filmmaker for more than 20 years. His films have been commissioned by broadcasters such as ARTE, ZDF, WDR, NatGeo, NHK and the Discovery Channel, and sold to more than 30 countries. Aside from his directorial work, he has acted as executive producer and creative director on high-end documentary series for both the German and international market. His recent work includes “Asia from Above”, “The Borderless Sky”, and “Equator – Line of Life”. He studied at the German Film and Television Academy in Berlin and at the Tisch School of the Arts in New York.
www.christian-schidlowski.de

Carolin Neubauer

Producer and Managing Director

Carolin has worked for production companies in Munich, Sydney, Berlin and Hamburg for over a decade. As a production manager, her portfolio includes the documentary series “Over the Islands of Africa”, “The Borderless Sky” and “Equator – Line of Life”, commissioned by broadcasters such as ZDF, ARTE, SWR, NHK, and the Discovery Channel. She also worked on several science and creative documentaries. Carolin studied Audiovisual Media in Stuttgart and has a Master’s degree in Media Arts and Production from UTS Sydney. She directed two own documentary films in England and Australia.

Jörn Meyer

Director and Development Producer

Jörn has been in the documentary industry on and off for over 20 years. Working with leading companies in Germany and England, he was part of productions for Channel 4, ARD, ZDF, WDR and ARTE, including the second-unit director credit on “KZ”, a film selected for the Sundance World Documentary Competition. Recently, Jörn has been working on the series “Equator – Line of Life” and “Russia’s Hidden Paradises”. He is currently co-directing the Poland episode of our series “Europe’s Wild Waterways”. Jörn holds a Master’s degree in Communication and Media Studies from the University of Westminster.

Films

Thailand – A Festival of Colours

3 x 43 minutes
With ZDF/ARTE, 2020

The turquoise bays of the Andaman Sea, the upiquitous golden Buddha statues, the Safron yellow robes of monks and the lush green of the rice fields: Thailand is a festival of colors. On a three-part journey we discover its large, diverse landscapes. And explore the inner workings of a country that dares to leap into the future but wants to preserve its old beauty. How do nature, progress and traditions go together in Thailand today?

The series will air on ARTE on March 15th and 16th 2021 and will then be available for acquisition outside of Germany and France.

Europe’s Waterways

5 x 43 minutes
With ZDF/ARTE, 2019

This five-part ARTE découverte series features five of the most beautiful European waterways. Traveling along rivers, lakes and alluvial landscapes, we discover hidden habitats of rare animals and plants, and learn about contemporary concepts for a sustainable living with water. The series takes us to France, Germany, Poland, Italy, Holland and Belgium.

The series was broadcasted on ARTE in February 2020. It is now available for acquisition outside of Germany and France. Please contact us or our distributor LGI Media in Melbourne.