Following That Trip We Took with Dad [+lee también:
crítica
tráiler
entrevista: Anca Miruna Lazarescu
ficha de la película] (2016), which was set in 1968 and told the story of a Romanian family’s long and arduous journey to the GDR, Anca Miruna Lazarescu – who herself first set foot in Germany in 1990, graduated from the University of Television and Film in Munich, and has won a string of accolades for her short films and aforementioned full-length movie – is now preparing her second feature, entitled Happiness Sucks.

The film, written by Silvia Wolkan, unfolds in a family headed by an active father (Martin Wuttke) who always looks on the bright side of life. While he tries to give back to society, his daughters Jessica (12 years old, played by Emilia Bernsdorf) and Sabrina (15, played by Ella Frey) struggle with their own problems. Jessica is often mistaken for a boy and has to deal with her many tics. She would happily swap places with Sabrina, who, despite her illness, appears to have her life completely under control. But the more Sabrina’s health worsens, the worse Jessica’s tics become. The girls need a plan – and fast. They come across a special ritual in an old book, which could be the answer. But the girls have to find a boy to sleep with Sabrina. They don’t have much time left, and Jessica puts everything she can into implementing the life-saving plan, no matter how crazy it may be. The cast of the film also includes Tina Ruhland, Stephan Grossmann, Christian Friedel (13 Minutes [+lee también:
crítica
tráiler
ficha de la película]) and Sophie Rois.

The shoot for the film took place over a five-week period from late September until early November. Happiness Sucks is being produced by Tobias Walker and Philipp Worm through their Munich-based outfit Walker+Worm Film, in co-production with ZDF and with the support of the DFFF federal film fund, the FFF Bayern and the NRW North Rhine-Westphalia fund. The movie’s distributor and release date are yet to be confirmed.

In collaboration with