Directing

Marcel Mettelsiefen

Born

1978-01-01 (48)

Place of birth

Munich, West Germany [now Germany]

Known for

Directing

Credits

27 titles

Known for

No artwork available
NR

Annual awarding of the Grimme Awards.

Grimme Award

1964

In Her Hands poster
5.9

As Western forces withdraw, Afghanistan's youngest female mayor braves mortal danger to lead a fight for education for the next generation of Afghans.

In Her Hands

2022

Unmasking Jihadi John: Anatomy of a Terrorist poster
6.7

The inside story behind the hunt for ISIS poster boy "Jihadi John" by the US and British military and intelligence services. An interrogation of the twisted worldview espoused by ISIS and its propaganda machine which was operated by "Jihadi millennials" who turned social media sites such as Twitter and YouTube into recruitment platforms.

Unmasking Jihadi John: Anatomy of a Terrorist

2019

Children of the Taliban poster
7.0

The story of four kids in Afghanistan whose lives changed dramatically after US troops completed their withdrawal and the Taliban swept to power

Children of the Taliban

2023

Watani: My Homeland poster
6.6

The story of one family's fight and struggle to survive the Syrian Civil War. Having lost her husband, the mother makes the heart achingly painful decision to leave her homeland, in search of safety and a brighter future for her children. Filmed over three years, the film chronicles the family's journey from the front-line in Aleppo, to a little town in Germany. Escaping the chaos and terror of their war torn homeland becomes a catalyst for a different kind of struggle; the struggle to understand your past and accept your present, to adapt to a new life, to hold on to hope, and the idea of belonging to a homeland.

Watani: My Homeland

2016

A Simple Soldier poster
8.0

Award-winning Ukrainian filmmaker and cinematographer Artem Ryzhykov transforms into a hardened professional soldier as he navigates the confusion, chaos, heartache and reality of modern warfare.

A Simple Soldier

2025

Series credits

Behind the camera

In Her Hands poster
5.9

As Western forces withdraw, Afghanistan's youngest female mayor braves mortal danger to lead a fight for education for the next generation of Afghans.

In Her Hands

2022

Unmasking Jihadi John: Anatomy of a Terrorist poster
6.7

The inside story behind the hunt for ISIS poster boy "Jihadi John" by the US and British military and intelligence services. An interrogation of the twisted worldview espoused by ISIS and its propaganda machine which was operated by "Jihadi millennials" who turned social media sites such as Twitter and YouTube into recruitment platforms.

Unmasking Jihadi John: Anatomy of a Terrorist

2019

Children of the Taliban poster
7.0

The story of four kids in Afghanistan whose lives changed dramatically after US troops completed their withdrawal and the Taliban swept to power

Children of the Taliban

2023

Children of the Taliban poster
7.0

The story of four kids in Afghanistan whose lives changed dramatically after US troops completed their withdrawal and the Taliban swept to power

Children of the Taliban

2023

Watani: My Homeland poster
6.6

The story of one family's fight and struggle to survive the Syrian Civil War. Having lost her husband, the mother makes the heart achingly painful decision to leave her homeland, in search of safety and a brighter future for her children. Filmed over three years, the film chronicles the family's journey from the front-line in Aleppo, to a little town in Germany. Escaping the chaos and terror of their war torn homeland becomes a catalyst for a different kind of struggle; the struggle to understand your past and accept your present, to adapt to a new life, to hold on to hope, and the idea of belonging to a homeland.

Watani: My Homeland

2016

Watani: My Homeland poster
6.6

The story of one family's fight and struggle to survive the Syrian Civil War. Having lost her husband, the mother makes the heart achingly painful decision to leave her homeland, in search of safety and a brighter future for her children. Filmed over three years, the film chronicles the family's journey from the front-line in Aleppo, to a little town in Germany. Escaping the chaos and terror of their war torn homeland becomes a catalyst for a different kind of struggle; the struggle to understand your past and accept your present, to adapt to a new life, to hold on to hope, and the idea of belonging to a homeland.

Watani: My Homeland

2016

A Simple Soldier poster
8.0

Award-winning Ukrainian filmmaker and cinematographer Artem Ryzhykov transforms into a hardened professional soldier as he navigates the confusion, chaos, heartache and reality of modern warfare.

A Simple Soldier

2025

Where the Light Shines poster
9.8

When two men compete to qualify in the Winter Olympics for the first time for Afghanistan, they realize that home is worth fighting for. In their wake they leave a passion for skiing and a hope for a brighter future. Where the Light Shines is the debut documentary from Pulitzer Prize-winning photographer Daniel Etter with stunning cinematography by Angello Faccini. It is produced by Academy Award nominees Marcel Mettelsiefen and Stephen Ellis along with Steven Sawalich from Articulus Entertainment. Filmed over four years, Where the Light Shines paints an intimate portrait of life in Afghanistan and shows the difficulties of trying to create change in a country that for generations has only seen war.

Where the Light Shines

2019

Spain: A Country Divided poster
3.0

Obsessively referring to the traumas and wounds that the Spanish civil war (1936-39) and Franco's dictatorship (1939-75) caused in their day no longer serves to explain the impassable abyss of incomprehension and hatred that the abject policies and radical positions adopted by both the right and the left in recent decades have opened up before the citizens of a country that is barely known beyond hackneyed cultural clichés.

Spain: A Country Divided

2022

Spain: A Country Divided poster
3.0

Obsessively referring to the traumas and wounds that the Spanish civil war (1936-39) and Franco's dictatorship (1939-75) caused in their day no longer serves to explain the impassable abyss of incomprehension and hatred that the abject policies and radical positions adopted by both the right and the left in recent decades have opened up before the citizens of a country that is barely known beyond hackneyed cultural clichés.

Spain: A Country Divided

2022

Spain: A Country Divided poster
3.0

Obsessively referring to the traumas and wounds that the Spanish civil war (1936-39) and Franco's dictatorship (1939-75) caused in their day no longer serves to explain the impassable abyss of incomprehension and hatred that the abject policies and radical positions adopted by both the right and the left in recent decades have opened up before the citizens of a country that is barely known beyond hackneyed cultural clichés.

Spain: A Country Divided

2022

Tanja: Up in Arms poster
NR

In the early 2000s, Dutch graduate Tanja Nijmeijer managed to rise to the top of the Colombian guerrilla group FARC, before Interpol issued an arrest warrant for her. Later she campaigned for peace. Who really is this woman?

Tanja: Up in Arms

2023

Tanja: Up in Arms poster
NR

In the early 2000s, Dutch graduate Tanja Nijmeijer managed to rise to the top of the Colombian guerrilla group FARC, before Interpol issued an arrest warrant for her. Later she campaigned for peace. Who really is this woman?

Tanja: Up in Arms

2023

Drug War in Ecuador poster
7.0

FRONTLINE examines how a once-peaceful nation is now gripped by drug cartels, violence and a military crackdown. With rare access to gang recruits, police, politicians and families caught in the crossfire, the documentary explores efforts to stem the violence and the human toll.

Drug War in Ecuador

2025

Drug War in Ecuador poster
7.0

FRONTLINE examines how a once-peaceful nation is now gripped by drug cartels, violence and a military crackdown. With rare access to gang recruits, police, politicians and families caught in the crossfire, the documentary explores efforts to stem the violence and the human toll.

Drug War in Ecuador

2025

Syria: Children on the Frontline poster
8.0

The story of five young children whose lives have been changed forever by the civil war in Syria.

Syria: Children on the Frontline

2014

Aufwachsen im Westjordanland - Gefangen im Zorn poster
7.0

Two 10-year-old girls, one Palestinian and one Israeli, recount their daily lives under bombardment in the West Bank. Two poignant perspectives on the same conflict.

Aufwachsen im Westjordanland - Gefangen im Zorn

2024

A State of Rage poster
10.0

In the West Bank, children grow up amidst a harsh and unforgiving reality. Daily life for Palestinians in Jenin Refugee Camp is shaped by the Israeli occupation, and the violence and oppression that comes with it. On the hills near Nablus, a Jewish settler family navigate the personal sacrifices and grief that come with their decision to live in an illegal settlement. They are resolute in their belief to remove Palestinians and settle the land. Children and their parents from both these areas search for their place in a world defined by violence and polarization.

A State of Rage

2024

A State of Rage poster
10.0

In the West Bank, children grow up amidst a harsh and unforgiving reality. Daily life for Palestinians in Jenin Refugee Camp is shaped by the Israeli occupation, and the violence and oppression that comes with it. On the hills near Nablus, a Jewish settler family navigate the personal sacrifices and grief that come with their decision to live in an illegal settlement. They are resolute in their belief to remove Palestinians and settle the land. Children and their parents from both these areas search for their place in a world defined by violence and polarization.

A State of Rage

2024

No artwork available
7.0

No synopsis available yet.

2017 Oscar Nominated Short Films: Documentary

2017

Children of Syria poster
10.0

The story of four children from families who survived war-torn Aleppo and try to start a new life in Germany.

Children of Syria

2016

Ecuador: las sombras del miedo poster
NR

No synopsis available yet.

Ecuador: las sombras del miedo

2025

El conserje poster
6.0

No synopsis available yet.

El conserje

2020

El conserje poster
6.0

No synopsis available yet.

El conserje

2020

No artwork available
NR

No synopsis available yet.

Afghanistan. Unser verwundetes Land

2020

No artwork available
NR

A startling portrait of everyday life in a war zone, through the eyes of children.

Children of Aleppo

2014