Being Bruno Banani
Being Bruno Banani tells the unique story of the first and only Tongan luger who qualified for the 2014 Winter Olympics.
- Filmmaker(s)
- Susann Wentzlaff
- Category
- Series
- Subject Matter
- Sports, Men
- Featured In
- PIC Exchange
This film tells the unique story of the first and only Tongan luger who managed to qualify in an amazingly short amount of time for the 2014 Winter Olympic Games in Sochi.
After several days of trials in Tonga, the 21-year-old student, Fuahea Semi from the island of Eua was selected. No one could have foreseen it, but it was an inspirational choice, he was a real natural talent.
Without any financial support from overseas partners, it would probably only be a short trip. Mathias Ihle from Makai Europe came up with the unique marketing strategy of changing the successful candidate's name to a that of a sponsoring company - Bruno Banani.
From being laughed at by the luge establishment and thought of as mad Bruno soon changed their minds. After only five months of hard training, far from home, Bruno Banani stood a realistic chance of taking part in the 2010 Olympic Winter Games in Vancouver. No luger has ever managed to achieve so much in such a short space of time.
Susann Wentzlaff - Writer/Director
Jorg Junge - Director/Director of Photography
Henrik Fehse - Editor