Struggle

Story

Shot in a semi-documentary aesthetic, Ruth Mader’s debut feature is about the loss of dignity in our affluent society. Ewa, a young Polish woman, hurries from one job to another – she picks strawberries, works in a poultry abattoir and scrubs rich people’s swimming pools. Vienna estate agent Marold on the other hand has no financial worries, but is trying to somehow fill the void of his life. When Ewa and Marold meet, their desperation drives them to extremes that take them to the edge of the physical and psychological abyss.

Director

RUTH MADER (*1974 in Vienna) studied direction at the Vienna Filmakademie and won the Max Ophüls Prize for her short film Gfrasta in 1999. In 2003, her debut feature Struggle won her an invitation to Cannes, her documentary What Is Love premiered in 2012 at the Berlinale. In 2017, FILMFEST HAMBURG showed her second feature Life Guidance. SERVIAM – Ich will dienen already won the Screenplay Prize in 2005 at the Diagonale and ran in competition at this year’s Locarno Film Festival.

Trailer