Film Comment:
Damla =Tropfen | Derya = Ozean
The 17 year old schoolgirl Damla, whose name means “Droplet” in English, lives with her third generation Turkish family in Berlin's Neukölln district. She gets help with her homework once a week at a counseling center for Turkish girls and women. The conflicting social expectations she has to deal with puts young women like Damla under enormous pressure. They are expected to fulfill family expectations and respect rules that stem from their culture of origin. They search for a personal identity that can somehow balance the restrictive role models offered by traditional culture while they participate in the quickly evolving world of today.
Credits
Original Title: Damla =Tropfen | Derya = Ozean
Language:
German original version, Original version with English subtitles
Country of Origin: Germany
Year : 2009
Duration: 31 Min.
b/w
Director: Elisabeth Pricken
Script: Elisabeth Pricken
Camera: Elisabeth Pricken
Editing: buero-beige
Music: Lizzie Líbera
Production: Elisabeth Pricken
Festivals: 2009: One World Berlin
supported by: Aktion Mensch – dieGesellschafter.de
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About the Film
Cultural expectations of traditional and modern society
The girls talk candidly about how hard it is to negotiate the vastly differing cultural expectations of traditional and modern society: about social expectations, emotional injury and their hopes and dreams.
They also relate their thoughts on the racism they are subjected to daily, as well as experiences with youth violence.
Changing times for crosscultural coexistence?
The women's stories
are accompanied by excerpts from a radio interview by moderator Ingo Kahle with Heinz Elmar Tenorth, a professor in history of education at Berlin's Humboldt University.
The stark black and white imagery underscores the monotony of the severely limited life options available to girls like Damla. Nonetheless, the film's message encourages girls like Damla to find a way out of their looming resignation. The film is a homage to those who are aware of their right to self determination: one “drop” at a time can create an “ocean”.
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