Filmmaker Angela Freiberg receives Sophie von La Roche Award 2013

All of the proposals submitted were worthy of the award, according to the chairwoman of the jury, city councillor Marianne Herrmann. Freiberg is a woman who, as a social pedagogue and in her cinematic work, deals with the situation of girls and women in Offenbach, shows it in a differentiated way and has been committed to women from very different contexts for almost two decades. "Angela Freiberg lets the women and girls themselves have their say and engages in dialog with them. In doing so, she has rendered outstanding services to the public perception of the social situation of women and in supporting the self-organization of women with a migration background," emphasizes Karin Dörr, Municipal Women's Representative of the City of Offenbach.

Freiberg worked for 18 years as a social education worker at the IB-Treff Waldhof, where she supervised the girls' group and set up the international women's group at the Waldhof neighborhood meeting point. Her commitment always went far beyond her professional activities. Today, around forty women from different cultures meet at the IB in Waldhof to learn German, do sports together, organize lectures and joint excursions. In short, they take an active part in life in their neighborhood and get involved.

At the Waldhof, Freiberg also met the Kokollari sisters, three girls aged 15 to 17 at the time, whom she portrayed in two films. "The Kokollari Sisters" (Germany 2006) and "Born in Offenbach" (2012) are the titles of the documentaries about the sisters, who were born in Offenbach and whose parents come from Kosovo. How do the three girls deal with their cultural roots, their origins and their environment in Offenbach?

With these films, Freiberg shows the real life situation of girls and women with immigrant family biographies in a city like Offenbach. It was and is important to her in her socio-educational and film activities: "To show the girls that being a woman is not a restriction, but an asset. And that it's always worth reaching beyond the socially prescribed female starry sky when it comes to life plans." In this respect, Angela Freiberg is also a role model: a high school diploma, two university degrees and several years of working in a male-dominated field (film and event lighting) have confirmed her decision to "reach for the stars" and become a self-employed filmmaker.

In addition to filming, Freiberg also works as a media education speaker and has undertaken commissioned work for foundations and social institutions. Since July 2013, she has been a neighborhood manager at the Diakonie neighborhood office in Frankfurt - Preungesheim. Freiberg still maintains numerous close contacts with the Waldhof women's group, the IB and the women's networks in Offenbach. "Angela Freiberg has rendered outstanding services to equal rights for women in Offenbach through her sustained and creative commitment and is a worthy recipient of the award," said Marianne Herrmann. The award ceremony will take place in Offenbach around International Women's Day in March 2014.