11-year-old Ben moves with his family from his home village Niederkirchbach, which has to make way for lignite mining, to Düren instead of Neu-Niederkirchbach like his friends. He unexpectedly has great difficulties settling in and misses his old surroundings. Above all, the talented soccer striker feels belittled in his new team. When it becomes apparent that the shy but likeable 12-year-old Tariq, a refugee from Aleppo who is also new to the class, is quickly becoming more popular and is also a better soccer player, Ben has to swallow his pride. Will he remain on the sidelines – or does his competitor have more in common with him than he thinks?

Sarah Winkenstette's Zu weit weg addresses the topics of immigration and integration in a sensitive and understandable way for children. It realistically depicts uprooting, loss of home, and friendship, and is carefully bringing together different worlds of experiences using cinematic means.

92 min., recommended for ages 7 and up, German with Engl. subtitles