Die Herren der Spiele

The Magic Life of V

February 2019 •Finnish

Haunted by childhood traumas, Veera is trying to become more independent through live-action role-playing. As she guides herself and her mentally challenged brother through worlds of multiple roles and identities, witches and wizards, she finds the courage to face the demons of her own past and her abusive father’s legacy.

Darkon

September 2006 •English

Darkon is an award-winning feature-length documentary film that follows the real-life adventures of the Darkon Wargaming Club in Baltimore, Maryland, a group of fantasy live-action role-playing (LARP) gamers.

Monster Camp

March 2007 •English

Welcome to Monster Camp, the true story about a world where people transform into creatures, heroes, and monsters to escape their daily lives. In the vein of Lord of the Rings, World of Warcraft, and Dungeons and Dragons; these enthusiasts have developed a complicated world to bring their fantasies to life. Romantic relationships are forged between characters. Friendships are destroyed over plot disputes. Characters are slain and never return. But keeping this world alive takes a lot of real world work. And unless someone is willing to take charge, the fantasy may be lost forever.

Sunday Warriors

August 2013 •German

Every year during summer one of the biggest battles of mankind takes place amidst the hillsides of middle earth. Knights, elves and magicians are fighting orcs and the dark powers. What looks like a scene from Lord of the Rings actually takes place in a field in Germany, where thousands of role players meet to plunge into a fantasy world of their own. More than 250.000 people in Germany regularly make this transition. The documentary accompanies five role players in their daily lives and their parallel ones. Where does their yearning for a shared world of fantasy come from? What does this reveal about our hectic, technological life? Sunday warriors is a film about the passion for playing and the ambition to exceed your limits.

The Dungeon Masters

September 2008 •English

The Dungeon Masters explores the subculture of role-playing games, specifically Dungeons & Dragons, which for over 30 years has offered gamers the chance to escape their mundane lives and participate in a world they might otherwise never experience. Popularity and power are based on creativity and imagination rather than social status or wealth, and success is based not on who you know but on what you do.

Faye

May 2024 •English

Through honest reflection, complemented by insight from colleagues and friends, Faye Dunaway contextualizes her life and filmography, laying bare her struggles with mental health while confronting the double standards she was subjected to as a woman in Hollywood.

Über Goober

June 2004 •English

Über Goober focuses on the often-misunderstood, sometimes-controversial, and always-kind-of-geeky world of Gamers. Director Steve Metze examines several different groups including historical miniature gamers, role-players, and those known simply as "LARPers." The film also explores opposition from religious groups, negative media portrayals, and some of the meanest 'man-on-the-street' interviews ever committed to video. Meet the Gamers, learn their exotic language, see their bizarre rituals, gasp at their semi-authentic costumes, and thrill to the painting techniques on their miniatures!

LARPing Saved My Life

October 2015 •English

Meet Jon Gallagher, a LARPer with Asperger's syndrome, and see how LARPing helps him make friends, learn social skills, get a job, and in many ways, saves his life.

5 pravidel

March 2013 •Czech

World of Darkness

May 2017 •English

An in-depth look into how the World of Darkness and Vampire: The Masquerade created a phenomenon in the 1990s – a zeitgeist that helped shape film, literature, fashion, club culture, and ultimately fans, whose lives it forever altered.

Screw It, I'll Play Make Believe

May 2011 •English

For some it's a cathartic release, and for others a means of escape, but for everyone who chooses to commit the time and expenses of doing it, Live-Action Role-Playing is addictive fun that allows fully grown adults to engage in the magical realm of make-believe-- a place that, as we all age, becomes increasingly less accessible.

Playing Columbine

November 2008 •English

Chronicles the history of the game "Super Columbine Massacre RPG!." The film traces back the 16-bit role-playing game to its inception, through the 2006 shooting at Dawson College in which the game was singled out by the media as a "murder simulator" that "trained" the shooter, and finally the game's removal from the list of finalists at the Slamdance 2007 Guerrilla Gamemaker Competition - prompting half the entries and a sponsor to pull out of the festival in protest. Written by tolka

Drakmar: A Vassal's Journey

May 2006 •English

A coming of age saga about a 14-year old boy whose life alternates between the medieval fantasy kingdom of Adria and the real world trials of a challenging adolescence.

War Game

August 2024 •English

A bipartisan group of U.S. defense, intelligence, and elected policymakers spanning five presidential administrations participate in an unscripted role-play exercise in which they confront a political coup backed by rogue members of the U.S. military, in the wake of a contested presidential election.

Treasure Trapped

December 2014 •English

Caught between two worlds, one real and one imagined, three filmmakers have travelled 4000-miles across Europe to understand Live Action Role-Play (LARP), the hobby where these worlds collide. In its essence, LARP is an extension of how you experienced games as a child. When tabletop games grew too big for the board, players put down their dice, picked up their swords, and have been playing make-believe ever since. The culmination of years-old conversations in a local pub, Treasure Trapped is part-documentary, part-road movie; a film that charts the journey of Mike, Al and Nick, as they explore this often misunderstood pastime. Casting a unique look over a worldwide community that is known for its eccentricities, this project aspires to bring the hobby to the masses. Game on!

Das Schwarze Auge - Hinter der Maske des Meisters

December 2019 •German

Let the Games Begin

May 2001 •English

Produced for the "Dungeons & Dragons" Special Edition DVD.

Futurama: Bender's Game

November 2008 •English

When Leela is insulted by a group of space-rednecks (like regular rednecks, but in space) she enters the Planet Express ship in a demolition derby. She emerges victorious, but when she brings the damaged ship home and the Professor sees the fuel gauge, he's enraged by the hit he's going to take at the Dark Matter pump. Now the crew have to find a way to break Mom's stranglehold on starship fuel, even if they have to wade through a Lord of the Rings-inspired fantasy-land to do it!

How to Make it to the Promised Land

March 2014 •English

Summer camp gets really strange for 15-year-old Lizzie when she is forced to play a Holocaust role-play game.

Role Models

November 2008 •English

Two salesmen trash a company truck on an energy drink-fueled bender. Upon their arrest, the court gives them a choice: do hard time or spend 150 service hours with a mentorship program. After one day with the kids, however, jail doesn't look half bad.