Rostock-Lichtenhagen, August 1992: unemployed youths struggle with their boredom and frustrations in a prefabricated housing development. At night, they run riot, fighting with the police and foreigners. The confrontations become so threatening that the authorities decide to evacuate the Romanian Roma from a refugee centre. As potential victims, the Vietnamese remain in the so-called “Sonnenblumenhaus” (sunflower house). The riots escalate, but the police retreat, and a night of violence ensues – before the eyes of a gaping and applauding crowd. The young filmmaker Burhan Qurbani reconstructs the notorious night that became a national disgrace in WE ARE YOUNG. WE ARE STRONG.
WE ARE YOUNG. WE ARE STRONG. recounts the incident of violent xenophobic riots in Rostock in 1992 from the perspectives of three very different characters. LIEN is a Vietnamese woman who settled in Germany, but at the end of the day she will be fighting for her life wondering if the place she called home could ever be one for her. STEFAN and his friends are part of the night’s violent turmoil. Young and angry, bored during the daytime, they look forward to the nightly riots and clashes with the police and foreigners. Unable to cope with his grief at the loss of a friend, Stefan gets lost in a circle of violence. Stefan’s father MARTIN is an ambitious local politician, trapped in a dilemma: does he advance his career or stand up for his ideals and take responsibility, which includes that for his son?
Director: Burhan Qurbani, colour and b/w, 128 min., 2013/2014
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