Claus Eberth

East Berlin, shortly after the construction of the Berlin Wall. Kurt Schröder and his family dig a tunnel to escape to West Berlin as they struggle to overcome the obstacles blocking their underground path to freedom.

Based on the classic 19th century tale by German writer/composer E.T.A. Hoffmann, the film investigates the tale's themes of obsession and madness, emphasizing expressionist imagery and theatrical style. The story relates the life of the young student Nathanael, whose childhood memories are haunted by a sinister man. As a child, Nathanael believed this dark figure to be the mythic Sandman, who puts children to sleep by stealing their eyes. When confronted by this same evil presence as an adult, he is pushed toward madness as he tries to confront his childhood fears.

This feature film describes the labor dispute of a piecework crew in a large German industrial company and its workforce against the background of the "September strikes" in Germany.

Conquering the 1,800-meter-high north face of the Eiger is a test of endurance for mountaineers. Tiger and Simmi have also set their sights on this tour.

The unemployed machinist Alfred "Scheff" Schefczyk moves from Württemberg to West Berlin full of hope, where he finds a job as a transporter. There, however, he despairs at the seemingly insurmountable dependency structures and the lack of solidarity among his fellow sufferers. The rent in the workers' hostel is raised disproportionately, but nobody wants to mess things up with the landlord or janitor. At work, piecework hours are tightened, but nobody wants to go on strike, and when they do, they are quickly crushed by the management's tactics. When Scheff tries to mobilize against the dismissal of one of the delegates, he finds only one worker willing to sign. "Dear mother, I'm fine," he nevertheless writes on a postcard.

An art student takes revenge on a nasty financial shark for a prison sentence by "foisting" fake paintings on him

A strike for better wages puts machine fitter Dieter Wittowski in financial difficulties. This upsets his plans for the future and brings his wife a step closer to self-realization, as she now accepts a more responsible job against his will. There are also disagreements with his father, whose blacksmith business he describes as a supplier for mass sales.

A young filmmaker becomes involved with a gangster in Berlin. Based on the Ulf Miehe novel Ich hab' noch einen Toten in Berlin.