The SunBreak

A young boy Rolf (Julius Weckauf) and his father Ludwig (Volker Bruch), a journalist who spoke out against Hitler, are racing toward the Spanish border via France attempting to escape the grasp of German soldiers and make it to America where Rolf’s mother waits for them.

A new school counselor Anamarija (Marina Redzepovic) is learning to navigate the egos and red tape of high school. Having never been staff at an institution before, she is realizing that there’s a lot more to her job than just trying to help kids.

A lighter look at midlife crisis and how we define ourselves through the relationships we have. Emilia (Christiane Paul) a once well-received actress now stay at home mom is throwing a critical eye on her life and the once perfect relationship with her husband Paul (Christoph Maria Herbst).

After eleven days of virtual and in-person screenings, partying, and celebrating independent filmmakers, the 48th Seattle International Film Festival closed on Sunday with a morning awards ceremony and an evening gala. In the afterglow of our individual festing, the SunBreak’s SIFF team gathered on the internet to debrief on this year’s event.

Seattle rarely looks as good on film as when Zia Mohajerjasbi’s directing. Having made his name over a decade ago with breakout videos for Blue Scholars and Macklemore, picked up a Stranger Genius Award, and built a resume with short films, he’s returned to familiar geographies for his feature film debut. In collaboration with cinematographer Nicholas Wiesnet, he brings the rich textures of the city to the screen in a poetic narrative about the wayward path of an oversized suitcase on its way from the Central District to East Africa.

The overriding objective of Brettan Hannam’s film of self-discovery is conveying the multifaceted diversity of the Mi’kma’ki people and territory in Nova Scotia. While the plot armature to support that ambition is veers between melodramatic and creaky, it does succeed in presenting a rich array of compelling images and communicating heartfelt feelings.

In her feature film debut, Annika Pinske brings an insightful slice-of-life to the screen. Concerned with the intersecting identities of German woman, her nuanced portrait centers on a Clara, a philosophy PhD candidate in Berlin who’s creating a “second act” for herself on the precipice of turning forty.