For over 250 years, Ludwig Van Beethoven’s work has given individuals an artistic resource for living well and living with an admirable purpose. Ten years ago, filmmaker Kerry Candaele set out on a journey around the world to understand this enduring legacy and answer some simple and open questions: How does Beethoven continue to work upon the world? What is it about this man, his extraordinary life and remarkable artistic gifts that keeps him new and alive to us?

The Trilogy

In the Beethoven | Hero Trilogy, three deeply personal films take us on a journey through history and around the world, telling stories of the enduring power of Beethoven’s creations, the ways they live within us, and how they often transcend the boundaries that separate us. Starting with Following the Ninth, the award-winning documentary that explores the impact of Beethoven’s final symphony, followed by Love & Justice and the story of Chileans sustaining hope in the face of political repression, and culminating with Last Will and Testament, focusing on Beethoven’s powerful late quartets, The Beethoven Hero trilogy will be on a screening tour across the US in 2024.

Following The Ninth: In the Footsteps of Beethoven’s Final Symphony, follows Candaele as he journeys across five continents to explore the resounding impact of Beethoven's Ninth Symphony.

Love & Justice: In The Footsteps of Beethoven's Rebel Opera brings together Beethoven's quest for love and justice and the harrowing yet inspiring tales of those impacted by Chile's 1973 coup

The trilogy's concluding film, Last Will & Testament: Beethoven's Late String Quartets, is a tender and contemplative look at Beethoven's final years.

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