A child spends a summer with their grandmother in the Basque country: campfires and family visits, playing pranks and the fear of losing bees. Growing up is reflected in the expanse of the endless summer. The siblings are busy with themselves, the parents have nothing to say to each other anymore, and the old neighbors whisper by the edge of the road: “what a pretty girl.“ The camera follows the child in overalls with the lively face, the shy to defiant attitude towards adults – it‘s initially unclear whether it‘s a boy or girl. And this is what‘s captivating about the debut, which shows how gender questions first pop up in incidental ways. What should the child wear to the baptism of the new baby in the village – also considering that money is already tight and the mother is doing everything in her power to still make it as a sculptor? What changing room should the child use at the public pool? What if new potential friends want to go to the toilet stall together? The child wants to be called Lucia, but Aitor is their male birthname. "Do I have to decide on a name," the child asks the mother. Sofía Otero (the youngest award winner at the Berlinale) is convincing with her sensitive, authentic acting that shows rather than tells. Against the backdrop of the natural idyll of the Basque country – the great aunt‘s beehives, with the queen that the child identifies with – a family story arises that is not just another coming out film. Director Estibaliz Urresola Solaguren gently leads us to the world of a child who is moving between boyhood and girlhood and is, above all, growing up.

Anna Hantelmann

Translation: Elinor Lewy