Phillip Klinger‘s debut film premiered at the Hofer Filmtage 2020 and since then has already had a remarkable festival career (in Braunschweig, Wiesbaden, Biberach, among others). “Dark Dreamers” (German title: “Albträumer“) is expected to be released in early summer 2021 under the UCM.ONE label Artkeim².
The two young leading actors, Sarah Mahita and Béla Gabor Lenz, impress with their nuanced acting. Both are no strangers, however: They have already been in front of the camera together for the Netflix series “We are the Wave“, and Béla also became known for his role in „Dark“, the German produced Netflix series which became a worldwide phenomenon.
Synopsis
Since her older brother Dennis jumped to his death two years ago, 17-year-old Rebekka (Sarah Mahita) has been trying in vain to come to terms with his suicide. Her parents are mainly concerned with maintaining their bourgeois façade and, like the village community, have long since identified a “culprit” for Dennis’ death: Vincent (Béla Gabor Lenz), his best friend, who jumped off the bridge with him and miraculously survived the fall. When Vincent returns to the small town in the Black Forest after a long absence, the old wounds are reopened. Rebekka, however, sees in the rebellious eccentric the only way to finally understand who her brother really was.
Against the fierce resistance of Rebekka’s parents, the two young people grow closer and a stormy love affair develops that is both healing and increasingly destructive. Rebekka is drawn deeper into her brother’s emotional world than she would like. When the situation escalates, she has to make a tough decision.
“Dark Dreamers” is a coming-of-age drama with mystery elements, told in intoxicating images and sensitively acted, in which a young woman’s painful search for answers collides with the mental and emotional constraints of her surroundings.
