Do they know you can say no?

This is a truly low-budget production, made with simple DV equipment by one person. It is part of a series of 12 public documentaries for young people. The film is about an encounter between two cultures. It is also about right and wrong. How should one behave as a guest in another country? Should one look the other way and feel broad-minded? The theatre group 'Ung utan pung' from Ragsved in Stockholm is a blend of professional activity and amateur teaching activity. Some 40-odd people are involved: Swedish young people from what, in Sweden, are regarded as deprived backgrounds. Few have been abroad and several have their roots in other cultures. Ranging in age from 12 to 25, they journey to South Africa to perform and develop together with a South African group of about the same age spread, yet with utterly different backgrounds. Young white people in a black shantytown setting! Culture crash! 'Ung utan pung's' performing style and language are very outspoken. But, as things turn out, that is not the big problem. And it is not long before things come to a crunch. The Swedes react strongly in their spontaneous manner. Normally, as tourists, we are fairly tolerant of other cultures. But, this time, things became too much. A thousand-year-old cultural tradition at loggerheads with what Swedish eyes see as the modern, right one. A harsh and brutal lesson in democracy for both the Swedish and South African youngsters.