Günther Kurth

The long-term documentary about Kalle, a boy from the prefabricated housing projects along the Allee of the Cosmonauts, paints a different picture of Berlin: “Poor” is not “sexy” here, it means: bad opportunities. The directing duo respectfully accompanies Kalle and leaves the charismatic boy to speak, supplementing scenes with animated sequences where background knowledge is meaningful.

Finally out again. The attempt to cheat his boss out of a truckload cost haulage driver Oswald a year of his life and his job. Now it's back home to the prefabricated building. It's just in time that Oswald's buddy Karl knows about trophies made from old D-Mark coins. In the iron foundry on the outskirts of the city, old coins worth several hundred thousand Deutschmarks are regularly stored for further processing - virtually unguarded. As the old coins can still be exchanged, this is a small but sure coup. While Karl is still laughing at Oswald's naivety, he is already beginning to put his plan into action. In a series of tragic and absurd situations, he recruits a team that couldn't be more different, from doped athletes to hated ex-Stasi men. They are united by their desire to use the money to make a difference.

Production of the State Opera Dresden 1989, directed by Joachim Herz