Happiness Sucks (Glück ist was für Weicheier)
© Walker Worm Films
Saturday, November 16, 2 pm
Germany, 2018, 95 min., Director: Anca Miruna Lazarescu, Screenplay: Silvia Wolkan, Cast: Emilia Bernsdorf, Tim Dieck, Ella Frey, Christian Friedel, Martin Wuttke
Festivals/Prizes:
- Opening Film, Hof International Film Festival 2018
- 2019 German Film Award for Best Supporting Actor, Martin Wuttke (nomination)
Stefan Gabriel is a lifeguard and dedicated father, always eager to view life on the positive side. While trying to give back to society by becoming an end-of-life caregiver, his two daughters - twelve-year-old Jessica and her older sister Sabrina - are struggling with their very own problems. Jessica is often mistaken for a boy and must constantly fight against her many strange tics. Sabrina is seriously ill. Jessica would love to trade with Sabrina, who is pretty and seems to have her life in control in spite of her illness. But the more Sabrina’s health deteriorates, the worse Jessica’s tics get. The girls must devise a plan, and fast. In an old book, the two encounter a special ritual intended to bring salvation by transferring Sabrina’s illness to somebody else. However, Sabrina and Jessica have to find a boy to sleep with Sabrina in order to the plan to work. Time is running out, and Jessica is committed to putting the lifesaving plan into action, no matter how crazy it may be.
Anca Miruna Lazarescu was born in 1979 in Timisoara, Romania, moving to Germany with her parents in 1990. She studied at the University of Television and Film (HFF) in Munich, attended summer classes at UCLA in Los Angeles, and participated in various scriptwriting workshops. Her documentary The Secret of Deva (2007) won several prizes including the Best New Talent Award at the Sehsüchte student film festival in 2007. In 2011, Lazarescu graduated from the HFF with the acclaimed short film Apele tac (2011), which was invited to over 300 festivals and won 82 international awards. She is a member of the Romanian and European Film Academies. Her debut feature Die Reise mit Vater (2016) premiered at the Munich International Film Festival in June 2016.
Back to Film|Neu 2019 Overview