Directed by Konstantin Ferstl, Finis Terrae has been seven years in the making, shot in over 20 countries around the world – from Latin America to North Korea. An essay film aims to be a requiem for a century and a journey around the world, from Fidel Castro’s funeral to the forgotten revolutions of the Lacandon rainforest and the fossilized theocracy in North Korea, through vanished countries from the Habsburg Empire to Alain Badiou. From the death of communism to the resurrection of capitalism, the essay film finds itself in search of the insulted dreams of the 20th century.

“The main question for me was how to transfer the emotional impact of a political movement into a musical narrative” explains Christoph Zirngibl about the project. “The solution was to write three different themes for the different narrative threads. The “hope theme“ (e.g. beginning of “The Secret City”) is about the hopes and dreams of people who are or were living under communist regimes. The “landscape theme“ (e.g. “Through a Vanished Country“), deals with the importance of buildings and special places in those regimes, such as the Berlin Wall). Last but not least the main theme (“Finis Terrae”) reflects the melancholy of the narrator and the framework plot. A very important part of the score’s sound is the use of solo-voice and choir to accentuate the importance of the regular people while also linking it to the importance of faith in the framework plot.“

Born in Regensburg, Christoph Zirngibl graduated in “Scoring for Film and Television” at the University of Music and Performing Arts in Munich in 2007. His first ever movie score was the short “Eyes in the City” by “Finis Terrae” director Konstantin Ferstl. A versatile composer who masters most diverse musical genres, Christoph Zirngibl has since then written scores for more than 60 movies such as Angst, Jerry Cotton and Victory Day. For Finis Terrae, he also produced an acclaimed concert as the film had its premiere on February 1, 2019 with the music performed live to picture at the Theater Regensburg.

1. Prologue 3:50
  2. Finis Terrae 3:09
  3. According To Badiou 2:55
  4. What Is To Be Done 1:21
  5. The Secret City 3:54
  6. Frozen Time 2:58
  7. Weary Dreama 3:35
  8. Through A Vanished Country 5:58
  9. The Forgotten Revolution 3:02
10. Requiem For A Century 3:30
11. Coppelia 3:09
12. Was It All For Nothing 4:17
13. Epilogue 1:43
14. End Titles 2:31