Thin Line Film Fest - “Ralf & Johnny”

Dir: Andre Enzensberger
Prd: Andre Enzensberger

TRT: 64 min

Ralf and Johnny are expatriates who are experiencing life in each other's countries. Ralf is a 31 year-old artist from Germany who has been living in America for a bit over a year. Johnny is a 31 year-old artist from America who has been living in Germany for a bit over a year. Both believe their new country of residence to be the only place where they can exist as the person they want to be and as the person they truly are - a life-loving and adventurous artist.

On the foreign turf, they do not have to face the reality and criticism that made their lives hard in the home country. In the new country, they believe to be free of their social and cultural expectations. In the new country, they experience artistic inspiration by meeting people of different backgrounds. However, both of them made an unusual choice - being a foreigner. As their lives are being documented over the course of their second year of living abroad, Ralf and Johnny's discovery of the 'foreigner self' marks the beginning of a long and rocky road between finding and losing oneself. They begin to realize that their choice of existence comes at a price.