Headlock

When Susanne crashes through the emergency room doors, heavily pregnant, she is completely unprepared and panics. In a fit of hysteria – labor is just beginning – she gets a revelation: she needn’t worry, because the child is preordained. 12 years later, Susanne is looking forward to a fresh start. After a long period of abstinence, she has renewed hope for a working relationship. But her son, whom she has considered a genius since the revelation, writes unreadable essays and his teacher wants to transfer him to a special school. Susanne and Jonathan are cramming for their lives.

This film is a collaboration between director Johan Carlsen and Cornelia and Christopher Kwanka, a single mother and her son living in Berlin-Lichtenberg. Conny and Christopher depict scenes from Johan’s childhood, as well as from their own experiences. They play Jonathan and Susanne, a mother and son who fight a battle for recognition and balance.