A film by Annette Scheurich, Documentary (43 min.)
NDR, 2010  

The European wild cat is ostensibly familiar to us, as we assume to have an exact copy on our couches at home. But no wild cat has ever been tamed. Its life is a secret well kept - hidden away in the forests of the European continent. It may share the looks of some domestic cats, but would certainly beg to differ in every other respect. Domestic cats never stray far from their man made homes and hunt mostly for pleasure or play. Wild cats on the other hand often cover large distances. They are scouting for new territory and mates, smugly disregarding man made borders. They never seek shelter even in a den and skilful hunting is their only way to survive. Only very few people, like wildlife biologists Ingrid Büttner and Manfred Trinzen, manage to catch an occasional glimpse of this little predator. Over the years they have been able to gather rare, if not unique footage of wild tomcats, kittens and their mothers. These passionate researchers and filmmakers are based in the German Eifel, close to the Belgian and Luxembourg border.