Rafael Gareisen

The ugly duckling of a fraught middle-class household has her life turned upside-down by the arrival of a handsome German exchange student, in this caustic, absurdist satire of petit-bourgeois family life from Dutch director Michiel ten Horn. (TIFF)

In 1950s Germany, a farmer's children face an excruciating dilemma when the son resists expectations to take over the family farm.

Ex-boxer Kalle is supposed to collect money from widowed mother-of-three Anne. At first he plays the tough guy. When he realizes that she won't be intimidated, his good heart wins out: Kalle lends a hand so that her plan to turn her farm into a guesthouse and pay off the debts with money from the tourism promotion scheme works out. Anne's children are thrilled - and she also takes a liking to the strong man. Mayor Jungbluth, however, torpedoes the plan...

The German ex-top model candidate Luna imagined it completely differently. She stands at the train station in Linz with all her luggage because she was promised a place in an influencer shared apartment. But Luna has too few clicks, too few followers and too little fame, which is why she's thrown out of the shared apartment before she's even been inside. Things are also going differently than expected for programmer Heribert, because he actually wanted to present the app idea at a pitching contest at Ars Electronica Center that would free him and his development team from his boring help desk job. But his pitch is at first pathetic, then embarrassing and ends in a faux pas with a shitstorm. And so he and his colleagues are thrown out before they can even develop. When the completely inexperienced but fearless would-be influencer Luna Heribert discovers first in the viral video and then in real life in Linz, she makes him an offer because she knows: we are better together than alone!

Penniless Peter Munk toils day after day as a charcoal burner in the Black Forest. In order to finally achieve the wealth he longs for and thus get closer to his previously unattainable crush Lisbeth, he turns to two mysterious forest spirits with his wishes. While the cranky little glass man can't really help him, the sinister Dutchman-Michel promises him an end to his financial worries. However, he demands Peter's heart in return and puts a cold stone in his chest instead. Although he can now afford everything and finally take Lisbeth as his wife, Peter no longer has any compassion, which soon has devastating consequences not only for himself but also for his fellow human beings.

While subjected to the horrors of WWII Germany, young Liesel finds solace by stealing books and sharing them with others. Under the stairs in her home, a Jewish refugee is being sheltered by her adoptive parents.

Gaspard is menestrel at the court of King Wilbur. He and Princess Ella love each other and want to get married and discover the world together. But Ella's father King Wilbur does not accept it. He traps Gaspard in a dungeon and makes his daughter believe that he has gone around the world. In prison, Gaspard meets Lucas "The Strong", who is stronger than 10 men, and Flora "The Witch", who orders plants. Thanks to Lucas, they escape from prison, and on their way they meet Marcus "The Runner", who carries an anvil in his bag to prevent himself from running faster than the wind; Benjamin "The Marksman", who has a view that carries further than that of an eagle; and Lisa "The Icy", who has a breath of ice.

The whole country wants an end of the drought. Maren has even more reason to wish for rain, her austere father,the rich hay farmer Iven, will approve her marriage with her beloved Andrees only if the rain falls before the next sunset.

Charleen is 15, melodramatic, mega depressed, and Kurt Cobain’s biggest fan. Her best friend Isa is getting really boring, her dad is out of the picture, and her mom has hooked up with her biology teacher. Even though she has an apprenticeship preparing bodies for funerals, which is pretty cool, her musical idols are all dead. It’s about time Charleen was, too.

Is. This. My. Son? No matter how often Tobias Wilke poses this question, there's always only one answer: Yes! Tobias, can't believe his eyes when he comes to the airport to pick up his 17-year-old son Finn – and learns that Finn is now calling herself Helen and wearing girls' clothes. Finn/Helen reveals that she's always was a girl, and that she used her year abroad in San Francisco to pass the "everyday life" test. This is required by law for everyone preparing for the sex reassignment surgery they will undergo upon reaching majority. Reactions from Helen's friends, acquaintances and schoolmates cover the entire gamut from derision to solidarity. Especially Helen's father, a well-known chef, finds it difficult to accept a situation he cannot understand. But Helen nearly always finds the right words - and humor - to counterbalance the ignorance and jeers of those around her. It is the beginning of a long, winding road towards the sexual identity she is convinced is hers.

During the Cold War, the Soviet Union captures U.S. pilot Francis Gary Powers after shooting down his U-2 spy plane. Sentenced to 10 years in prison, Powers' only hope is New York lawyer James Donovan, recruited by a CIA operative to negotiate his release. Donovan boards a plane to Berlin, hoping to win the young man's freedom through a prisoner exchange. If all goes well, the Russians would get Rudolf Abel, the convicted spy who Donovan defended in court.

The unorthodox millionaire's wife Eva Klüber raves when her husband Rainer divorces her and she should keep according to the marriage contract nothing of the common assets. Eva fictitiously her own kidnapping, in order to come to what they see as more than earned money. But her perfect plan is backfiring in several ways.

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The spin-off to the original series 'In aller Freundschaft' focuses on the young doctors in a fictional clinic in Erfurt. In this emotional drama series, hospital staffers and patients navigate life's challenges.

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Lena Lorenz is a captivating drama series that follows the life of a talented and ambitious midwife, Lena Lorenz, who returns to her idyllic hometown in the Bavarian Alps after working for several years in a bustling city hospital. Seeking a quieter and more meaningful life, Lena embarks on a journey of self-discovery, as she navigates the challenges and joys of her new profession in the picturesque rural village.

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Hamburg thriller with great depth