STOFF/LACE RELATIONS uncovers the hidden histories of a global trade that connected a small town in Austria to the bustling markets of Lagos, Nigeria. Through the intertwined lives of an Austrian lace exporter and a Nigerian market queen, the film reveals how colonial legacies shaped a multi-million-dollar industry – enriching Europe while contributing to the collapse of West Africa’s indigenous textile economy. Combining on-location encounters and a powerful sociodramatic method, the film shifts the lens: Who tells the story? Who profits? Who remembers? Directed collectively by filmmakers from Austria and Nigeria, Lace Relations is not simply about textiles. It is about colonialism, memory, gendered resistance – and the patterns of power that continue to shape our world.

Crew
Directors
Anette Baldauf
Joana Adesuwa Reiterer
Chioma Onyenwe
Katharina Weingartner

Writers
Anette Baldauf
Joana Adesuwa Reiterer

Camera
Hanno Mackowitz
Jerry Ossai
David Wyte
Marie-Thérèse Zumtobel, aac

Editing
Alexandra Löwy, aea
Anabel Rodríguez Ríos

Music
Bernhard Fleischmann
King Sunny Ade
Niniola

Sound
Waheed Alao
Hjalti Bager-Jonathansson
Metong Mewon
Sophie Wasserburger
Tong Zhang, fta

Producer
Katharina Weingartner
Green Consultant
Natascha Gertlbauer

Production company

Production funding
Österreichisches Filminstitut (ÖFI/ÖFI+)
Filmfonds Wien (FFW)
ORF Film/Fernseh-Abkommen
Filmförderung Vorarlberg
Stadt Feldkirch
Marktgemeinde Lustenau