Dolls of Dresden

At 19, Zenaida has fully experienced the ugly face of the European dream. A victim of women’s trafficking, born in Africa and trapped in a European city, she is coerced by her “owners” to work in a brothel as a prostitute. Her life has been gradually reduced to a pathetic, meaningless routine and a recurring sequence of drug-induced hallucinations, which, while providing an escape from the present, bring back to life nightmares from the past. Parallel images of her life in the poverty of an African slum and the misery of a ruthless European city. An utter deadlock.

Through candid interviews, narrative flow, and a hybrid combination of observational and archival material, the film explores Margaritari’s unique self-expression. At its core lies their artistic practice within the fields of comics and the independent queer pornographic scene.