The German filmmaker, Jens Hoffmann, was born in the German Black Forest. Growing up, he was always keen on sports as well as on the film-making process: he was a gifted skier and football player. It was exactly these affinities, sports and film-making, that would soon contribute to his directing future.
He began accumulating his film experience in the early 90s. Indeed, his first project was a documentary, capturing his own activities as a freeskier on a 16mm camera on the most dangerous and desolate mountains of Alaska and the Alps.
Also in the 90s he studied Communication and Journalism in Munich and after some years in television, his ultimate transfer was marked by his work on an international IMAX project in 1998. Since then he has not stopped working on several film projects and commercials around the globe.
His documentary film, ‘Fatima's Hand’, about a perilous BASE-jump in a remote area of Mali, West Africa, has received more than 14 awards from international film festivals.
His work includes the documentary ‘Journey to the Center’ with Jeb Corliss- shot in China,
produced in Munich and Los Angeles, which won several awards.
The long-term project, ‘20 Seconds of Joy’, which is still collecting international awards was premiered at HotDocs in Toronto, the biggest and most recognized North American Documentary Film Festival.
Jens Hoffmann is also the only director who won three years consecutively ,Best Documentary Award‘ at the world‘s biggest and well known Adventure and Mountain Film Festival in Banff, Canada.
For the release of, ‘9to5 - Days in Porn’starring, among others, Sasha Grey, the director spent a number of years in the epicenter of the adult entertainment industry. In that way,he was
able to portray several characters, creating an authentic and insightful view into their lives, which was highly rewarded by the most important film festivals worldwide, theatrical audience and cultural media and has numerous international releases including USA, Canada, Germany, UK, Italy, Brazil and many others.
But Jens is no one trick pony. “9to5 Days in Porn” was proof that he had more than just one story to tell and won him the nomination for the highly prestigious German Camera Prize. His work on commercial and corporate films throughout the years have also consistently garnered him several awards.
2011 Hoffmann completed filming as 2nd Unit Director and Cameraman on the star-studded Hollywood Romcom “Chalet Girl”, starring among others Brooke Shields, Bill Nighy (Pirates of the Caribbean, Pirate Radio, Ed Westwick (Gossip Girl), Felicitas Jones (The Diary of Anne Frank) and Ken Duken (Inglourious Basterds), which hit theaters at the same year.
2013 he was invited to integrate the BBC America/ Sky Atlantic miniseries crew of the author of the British secret agent 007, Ian Fleming. Again he was able to bring his skills on the skies and as the 2nd Unit Director and DoP for the skiing action scenes.
2013 he also conceptualized, directed and shot Munich’s bid film for the 2018 Winter Olympic Games.
2014 Hoffmann has just finished his new factual film “Mata Mata“, following in the next month a nomination as "Best Cinematography" in Europe at Camerimage.