'Ashcan' / 'Codename Ashcan' is a new documentary film and theatre production, chronicling the origins of the Ashcan secret prison camp in Luxembourg.
The town of Mondorf-les-Bains played an important role, in Luxembourg, after the Second World War. In preparation for the Nuremberg Trials, Nazi criminals were interrogated on the site of the town's current Palace Hotel. At the time, the location was used as a prison camp, and was so secret that very little material documenting its existence, is available. For this reason, it doesn't come as a surprise that the majority of Luxembourgers have never heard of 'Camp Ashcan'. What was the camp like? Who were among its prisoners? Were there any significant rivalries among those who resided there? And, last but not least, how do we process this important episode of Luxembourg's history?
At the end of the Second World War and under American guidance, the Allied forces established Camp Ashcan at the Palace Hotel. Between May and September 1945, high-level Nazis and generals were interrogated in this secret location, before being sent to trial in Nuremberg. Among the prisoners held at the camp were Göring, von Ribbentropp, von Runnstedt. However, the location was also associated with other notable names, including the young American officer, John Dollibois, who later became ambassador to Luxembourg.
For the last 30 years, Belgian film director, Willy Perelsztijn, has used film as a medium to broach the theme of 'memory', particularly as it relates to historical events. Previously, he was the producer of Claude Lahr's compelling documentary Heim ins Reich (loosely translated as Back to the Reich). Now, with his promising new documentary film, Ashcan, Perelsztijn hopes to deliver a gripping piece of cinema about a relatively unknown topic in Luxembourg's history.
Perelsztijn chose a film-theatre experiment, as a way to bring Ashcan to life.
By all accounts, information about the camp itself, as well as everything that happened within its walls, was kept extremely confidential. This presented its own challenges during the making of the documentary. However, Perelsztejn developed a very personal and highly original method of documentary film-making, in order to deal with this lack of evidence. Beginning in April 2017, the director filmed, at Luxembourg's National Theatre, various rehearsals for the play, Codename Ashcan, which recounts the story of the secret prison, as a dramatic piece of theatre.
Director of the National Theatre, Frank Hoffmann, maintains that the collaboration between Perelsztijn and himself has been a huge challenge, given this truly innovative concept.
Ashcan, the documentary, premieres at the Luxfilmfest and will go on general release in Luxembourg's cinemas in September 2018.
