Macondo (2014)

The film is set in the refugee settlement of “Macondo,” located in an industrial area on the outskirts of Vienna, in the 11th district of Simmering. Estimates put the population at between 2,000 and 3,000 people from 22 countries. Among them is Ramasan, an eleven-year-old Chechen boy and the film’s protagonist, who grows up in difficult circumstances with his mother, Aminat, and his two younger siblings. Since his father was killed in the war and he is the eldest son, Ramasan has to take on a great deal of responsibility for the family. While his mother is at work, he looks after his two little sisters or does the shopping. He also has to help his mother as an interpreter at important appointments with the authorities. The family has not yet received a positive response to its asylum application. One day, Isa, a former wartime comrade of Ramasan’s late father, moves into the settlement. He gives Ramasan a family photograph and his father’s watch. Curious, Ramasan watches the likeable newcomer and questions him. He soon discovers that his father was not the war hero he had always believed him to be. A close bond gradually develops between Isa and Ramasan, “but when Aminat begins to take an interest in Isa, Ramasan is plunged into emotional conflict.” He feels threatened and suddenly sees Isa as a rival. Although Isa responds to him with understanding, Ramasan takes all his anger out on him. The situation reaches a dramatic climax when Ramasan is one day accused of breaking into an excavator yard at night. In front of the police officers, Ramasan simply claims that Isa had urged him and his friends to break in. Only when Isa is taken away by the police does Ramasan realize what he has done. Full of remorse, all he can do is wait for Isa to return and forgive him.