27 Storeys – Alterlaa Forever

The glory days of the 1970s still live on in Vienna's 23rd district. It is home to Austria's largest social housing complex, Wohnpark Alterlaa, the flagship project of architect Harry Glück. Bianca Gleissinger takes a humorous look at the surprisingly, even unbelievably, happy residents of this “city within a city,” which allows people from the working and middle classes to live a comfortable life. Sunbathing by the pool on the roof of a 27-story building, shopping in the neighboring stairwell, or taking advantage of numerous public services that make life outside the complex seem dull and unattractive.

The film presents many facts and statistics about the now world-famous urban development, presented in the Austrian Pavilion at the 2025 Architecture Biennale as a model from the past, but also a model for planning the future. However, the director's personal paean to the housing estate, which she was reluctant to leave after her parents' divorce, allows her to present vivid stories not only about the space, but also about the lifestyles of the residents for whom Alterlaa is literally everything. At the same time, it reveals the dark side of functioning in this colorful, nostalgic, and disturbing utopia with its apparent idealism.

The screening is organized in cooperation with the Austrian Cultural Forum in Warsaw and the National Institute of Architecture and Urban Planning. The screening is supported by the Foundation for Polish-German Cooperation.