Former car enthusiast ‘tattoos’ his Tesla

In this roughly 16-minute film, we meet Martin Oetting as he embarks on a deeply personal journey. The short film begins with him removing the Tesla brand emblems from his car, symbolising his transformation as he sketches his thoughts and emotions directly onto its surface. Auto | Biografie is available in both German and English, with viewers able to switch language in the settings.

“Many people bought Teslas because they believed they were contributing to a better world,” Oetting reflects in his work. “The realisation that the opposite was true – that it was all about funding the dreams of a madman who wants to destroy this planet to travel to another – came as a shock. Especially to me. Tesla arrived at a critical moment in my life and seemed to be the answer I had been waiting for.”

Oetting describes himself as a lifelong car enthusiast, obsessed with cars from morning till night. “But when I eventually realised how destructive the automotive industry is to our Earth – our habitat – I initially thought American electric cars were the solution.” This realisation was followed by profound disappointment, which Oetting channelled into a highly creative response.

He explains: “In 2025, I spent a long time thinking about what to do with my Tesla to come to terms with my mistake and this disappointment. After many discussions and much reflection, it became clear that I had to draw my own car story – my ‘auto-biography’ – ONTO the car. This included my political realisation that we fundamentally cannot continue living on this planet the way we have been.”

With the release of his film, Oetting hopes to inspire others to ‘question their fundamental assumptions about our world – and about how we behave as human beings.’ He is, among other things, co-founder and board member of the organisation GermanZero and the initiator of the new organisation System Delta, which focuses on developing a new and sustainable economic system.