Breaking the Ice
An adolescent ice hockey player, Mira, seems to be hard as ice and doesn’t allow herself any weakness. She has to reconcile the role of team leader with work in a vineyard, which demands physical strength. But when the new player named Theresa joins the team, cold and determined Mira starts to melt, showing her true colours and discovering aspects of her personality that she wasn’t aware of before. Night trips through the underground, queer side of the city give her wings which she refuses to fold up any longer. But the people around still prefer Mia in her previous, designated role.
Director Clara Stern, for whom “Breaking the Ice” is a full-length debut, highlights that she really wants her films to make a strong impact on the viewer and doesn’t leave them indifferent. She urges us to focus on social subjects, especially feminism.
🏆 Max Ophüls Festival 2023 – Max Ophüls Award – Best Social Interest Film
🏆 Max Ophüls Festival – Screenplay Award
🏆 Max Ophüls Festival 2023 – Young Jury Award
🏆 Max Ophüls Festival 2023 – Best Feature Film, Nominee
directed & written:
Clara Stern
cast:
Alina Schaller, Judith Altenberger, Tobias Samuel Resch, Pia Hierzegger, Wolfgang Böck
music:
Benedikt Palier
cinematography:
Johannes Hoss
production:
Austria 2022
running time:
102 minutes
category:
feature film
English/Polish subtitles