Based on the true story that shocked a nation in the summer of 1988 and revealed the scandalizing amount of errors committed by the media and the police in a half-baked attempt to rescue hostages.
This drama is based on the childhood memories of Hans Jürgen Massaquoi, who was one of the few black native Germans in Nazi Germany. In 1935 at the age of nine, he lives with his German mother in a small flat in Hamburg's working class district Barmbek, while his father and grandfather had left the country. Although the boy is not persecuted by the Nazis and dreams of joining the Hitler Youth, his skin color makes him a target for racist abuse...
East-Germany, 1984: Frank Korbach is looking forward to attending drama school, while his rebellious best friend Thomas is refusing to do military service. Together with the adventurous but naive Alex, Thomas plans to make a desperate attempt to escape to the West. Knowing that he might never see them again, Frank accompanies Thomas and Alex to the frontier. Suddenly, they are confronted by a special unit of the Stasi, the East German secret police. Although the boys manage to avoid capture, Frank's old life is gone forever - he has now become a fugitive. Frank's father Kurt Korbach is stunned by the escape. Unknown to his son, Kurt is a Major in the Stasi. Convinced that Frank is innocent, he persuades his superiors that he alone can bring his son back. Together with the suspicious Colonel Frey - a time bomb waiting to explode - Kurt sets off to track down the runaway boys.