Break Even

Alex is a part-time construction worker and a small-time criminal, and one of life´s greatest couch potatoes. He has nothing to show for hi 33 years but a broken marriage, a guitar, and a Trabi (an east German car). Things improve, but only momentarily, when he meets Svetlana, an attractive young Bosnian prostitute. 'Break Even' takes a glance at the life of Alex, a small guy in the big city of Berlin, whose greatest obstacle on the path to self improvement is himself. 'Break Even' was shot on Digital Video in 12 days. The story arose from a five-week character development phase with the actors. Dialogues were never written down and the shoot had a distinctly documentary nature. The 'from the hip'-style camera work and jump-cut editing gives the film a dynamic pace which stands in interesting contrast to the simple storyline and precise concentration on the characters.