The Exciting Journey of Yeast Cells

Student Movie about the "Challenging Adventures of Yeast Cells"

"The Challenging Adventures of Yeast Cells" - main movie, 18 min.

HSRM Media Management students have produced a movie about yeast cells at Hochschule Geisenheim University. The movie visualizes microbial processes during  winemaking and combines three different formats: life action, studio scenes and cartoons. Different locations, including a vineyard in Geisenheim, a laboratory and the cellar of the Department of Enology, provided the perfect setting. The yeast cells were represented by students, which brings the scenes to life and adds a lot of emotions. “The performance of the actors and the visual quality of the images are amazing”, says Prof. Dr. Andrea Gschwendtner from the Media Management program, and summarizes: “Wine treats your senses, a film treats your eyes and ears.”

Sparking interest in microbiology

Under the direction of Prof. Dr. Andrea Gschwendtner, the joint media project of the two universities was a great farewell for Prof. Dr. Manfred Großmann, the long-time head of the Department of Microbiology and Biochemistry at Hochschule Geisenheim University. As part of the celebrations for the 125th anniversary of the Yeast Breeding Center and the official farewell ceremony for Prof. Dr. Manfred Großmann, the movie now celebrated its premiere. It is a great way of sparking interest in microbiology and visualizing the activities of yeasts, says Prof. Dr. Großmann, "because yeasts are living organisms and have needs".

125th anniversary of the Yeast Breeding Center

As Germany’s first facility to produce pure yeast cultures, the Yeast Breeding Center was founded and directed by Dr. Julius Wortmann based on the studies of Louis Pasteur and Prof. Emil Christian Hansen, and supported by the “Deutscher Weinbauverein” (German Winegrowers’ Association). In the years to come, institutes around the world followed the lead. Since 1994, Prof. Dr. Großmann had been the head of the Department of Microbiology and Biochemistry. Guest speakers from the Hessian State Parliament, the Hessian Ministry of Science, Research and the Arts, Macquarie University Sydney and Geisenheim's mayor Christian Aßmann attended the anniversary celebrations (Source: Hochschule RheinMain, 2019)

Project supervision: Prof. Dr. Andrea Gschwendtner and Prof. Dr. Manfred Großmann   

1 - "Multicultural Yeast Cells in the Vineyard"

2 - "Wine Yeasts under Pressure"

3- "Wine Yeasts and their Survival in the New World"

4 - "Wine Yeasts and Alcohol"

5 - "Sometimes Wine Yeasts need Fast Food"

Contact

Manfred Großmann
Prof. Dr. Manfred Großmann

A movie by: Turan Firatli, Maren Elbrechtz, Carolin Wolf, Nicole Mauel, Suzan Turan, Gayane Arutti, Christopher Wohlert, Yves Otterbach, Lea Schnell, Lisa-Marie Rheinhardt, Lola Marie Grösch, Daniel Twardoch, Meike Winter, Elisa Sholobnjuk, Nicole Victoria Strohkorb, Nils Polak, Belinda Nedele, Leonie Steinfeld, Lisa Bastian und Helen Ringleb (Media Management HSRM)

Project: Media presentation of microbial processes during the alcoholic fermentation of grape must

  • Prof. Dr. Andrea Gschwendtner, Media Management | Audiovisual Media Hochschule RheinMain
  • Prof. Dr. Manfred Großmann, Department of Microbiology, Hochschule Geisenheim University

(2019)