Fortschritt im Tal der Ahnungslosen

The legacy of the German Democratic Republic is being renegotiated in the former state-owned "Fortschritt" factory. Where combine harvesters were once manufactured, asylum seekers now live, facing weekly racist demonstrations in East Germany. The Syrian asylum seekers get help with their German orientation course from former factory workers. What begins with a humorously staged German class in the "Fortschritt" ruins ends with school lessons in civics and a GST military camp. Archival material reknits the socialist bond of friendship that existed between Syria and the GDR in the 1980s. The local choir performs GDR songs and the ruins become a symbol of a lost homeland, blurring the lines between then and now. All this and the actors in the film stand for more than just themselves.