Feature film
Königin von Niendorf (Queen of Niendorf)

Director: Joya Thome | Cast: Lisa Moell, Mex Schlüpfer, Denny Moritz Sonnenschein, Elias Sebastian, Ivo Tristan Michligk, Salim Fazzani | Language: German, with English subtitles

The summer holidays have just begun in Brandenburg, but this year ten-year-old Lea is not off to camp with her friends as usual. In fact, she finds the other girls at her school increasingly strange. So Lea spends most of her time cycling around the village and visiting Mark, a musician who is leading an alternative lifestyle on an abandoned farm. Out on her bike one day, Lea spots five boys who are manhandling a large oil barrel over the fence at the paint factory and then race off with their haul stowed on a bike trailer. Lea’s curiosity is aroused. At the next opportunity she follows the boys and discovers that they have built a raft on a small lake. The raft belongs to the gang, however, and girls are not permitted under any circumstances. But Lea is determined to join the gang and is willing to do a dare to be accepted. From which point on the summer seems full of adventures.

Joya Thome’s debut film is impressive for its atmospheric pictures, sensitive narration and, not least, for the excellent performance of its strong leading actress.