Episode 690: In The Seats With....Jamie Kastner and 'The Spoils'

In The Seats with...

It's so easy for things to get so complicated...
On this special episode, friend of the show writer/director Jaime Kastner returns with 'The Spoils'.
Amid the rise of the far-right in Germany, as the spoils of post-WW2 collections hit the world art market afresh, lawyers, curators, politicians, and Jewish groups the world round are duking it out, painting by painting, sketch by sketch, over questions of ownership, history, and morality.
A series of failed attempts by the city of Düsseldorf to honour German-Jewish art dealer Max Stern, who barely escaped the war, settled in Montreal and became Canada’s most successful art dealer, cuts to the heart of the current crisis in Germany and the art world beyond around the restitution of Nazi-looted art.
Through a combination of exclusive interviews, actuality captured over a four-year period, and a gold-mine of rarely seen
stock footage, The Spoils traces the be times tragic, often irony-laced strokes in this ongoing battle.
We had the pleasure of sitting down with Jamie to talk about how he discovered this story, the realities of the war in Germany and it's subsequent aftermaths that are still taking place on many different levels.
It's kicking off it's theatrical run across Canada and all the details are below so you can check out this truly thought provoking and conversation starting film. Because it's not a story of answers, yet it's one that reminds us how we have to keep asking questions....
Toronto

• Empress Walk - week long starting April 4
• Hot Docs - April 5th (Q&A at 7:30pm)

Montreal

• Cinema du Musee - April 6th (Q&A at 5PM with Jamie and Clarence moderated by Stéphane), April 8th (12PM), April 10th (12:45PM)

Ottawa

• ByTowne Cinema - April 7th (Q&A at 6:30pm)

Waterloo

• Princess Twin - April 23rd (Q&A time TBC)

Hamilton

• Playhouse Cinema - April 26th (Q&A time TBC)

Edmonton

• Metro - April 27th (Q&A at 12:30pm)

Vancouver

• The Rio - May 3rd (Q&A, time TBC)