Out of Place

Kevin, Dominik and David are working in the fields and buildings of local farming families in Romanian Transylvania. They are just three of hundreds of young Germans living in something known as “educational measures abroad”. In this programme, young people deemed to be “difficult” are sent to sites all over Europe to be brought back on track. They are appraised by German educators and assessed according to a strict points system. In the midst of these hills and forests, the boys are almost completely isolated from their original environments and scarcely any traces of their pasts can be found. The uniformity of their daily routines in this place is designed to prepare them for an assimilated life back in Germany. But is this really what the boys need? In this regime there is no room for their desire for individual freedom, affection or a family. And so Kevin, Dominik and David search for their own ways to survive in their uprooted situation. A story about growing up in a dubious system.
by Friederike Güssefeld Germany 2019 German, Romanian 86’ Colour Documentary form

Crew

Written and Directed by Friederike Güssefeld
Cinematography Adrian Campean, Julian Krubasik
Editing Miriam Märk, Sven Heussner
Music Wolf-Maximilian Liebich
Sound Design Wolf-Maximilian Liebich
Sound Wolf-Maximilian Liebich, Lenja Gathmann
Producers Florian Brüning, Alireza Golafshan, Thomas Herberth
Co-Production Hochschule für Fernsehen und Film München München
Bayerischer Rundfunk München

Friederike Güssefeld

Born in Hamburg, Germany in 1984, she studied documentary and television journalism at the HFF Munich from 2008 to 2018. She currently lives in Berlin and works as a director and screenwriter for fiction and documentary projects.

Filmography

2009 Von Haus zu Haus; short documentary 2013 Mutter, Seelen, Allein; short film 2015 Wenn man sie bedauert, können sie schlecht sterben; documentary 2016 Kai; short film · Wildnis zum Kaffee; documentary 2019 Out of Place; documentary

Bio- & filmography as of Berlinale 2020