Short film ‘In the Storm’

Around 43,000 children and young people in Austria regularly take on responsibility for relatives in need of care. As so-called ‘young carers’, they look after parents, siblings or other family members. This is a reality of life whose scale even took the film crew by surprise at first. “The figures really struck a chord with us,” says Patrick Mercelat, who made the film together with Elias Engelhardt and Maximilian Pfeiffer.

The impetus for the project came from the care support app ‘Alles Clara’: for its launch campaign at the end of 2025, students from the Bachelor’s and Master’s programmes in MultiMediaArt were invited to develop film ideas on the topic of young carers. Patrick’s team won them over with their pitch. “At the start, we ourselves knew far too little about how many children care for family members and what that means for their everyday lives,” says Patrick.

The screenwriter’s extensive research led to a main character deliberately portrayed as more than just a heroine: she takes responsibility and is strong, yet is also allowed to be vulnerable and make mistakes. “That is precisely what makes her very human. And that is why her story really touches you,” says Patrick.

On set in the film production hall at Salzburg University of Applied Sciences

The team quickly decided that the short movie should be shot on 16-mm film. Cinematographer Maximilian Pfeiffer, in particular, was keen to work with this medium for this project: “There’s something very human and personal about 16-millimetre film that suits this story well. Behind the statistics are young people and their stories. In our short film, we bring them to life for a few minutes.”

At the same time, working with analogue film placed considerable demands on the team. Film stock is limited; every shot must be carefully prepared, and the developed film isn't available right away. Rehearsals prior to the actual shoot were correspondingly intensive. “It was an exciting challenge. You work much more deliberately because you can’t just shoot indefinitely,” explains Maximilian.

Filming took place over four days at the start of June, with much of it in the new film production hall at Salzburg University of Applied Sciences, which provided ideal conditions for the shoot. Instead of using a real flat, the team built their own set in the film studio two weeks before filming began. This allowed them to precisely control the lighting, camera work and the film’s special effects.

“Im Sturm” sparked a discussion about young carers at the European Forum Alpbach and was later screened for a wider audience at the Alpbach fire station. The film sparked a conversation about a topic often overlooked.

Now ‘Im Sturm’ is set to continue its journey. With support from the University of Applied Sciences, the team plans to submit entries to various festivals and awards. At the same time, the three students are working on their Master’s theses and other projects.

© 2026 Salzburg University of Applied Sciences GmbH