Siebzehn

A film about the complex, bewilderingly beautiful and sometimes cruel realities of everyday teenage life in the countryside, told with authenticity and unflinching honesty.

The final weeks before the summer holidays, somewhere in Lower Austria. Seventeen-year-old Paula lives with her nineteen-year-old sister Magdalena and their father in modest circumstances. Since their mother’s sudden death a year ago, Paula has had to shoulder most of the responsibility. Her sister tries to cope with her grief through rebellion, while their father has fallen silent.

To finish school, Paula works in her free time as a waitress at a small bar in the village. Her best friends are Marvin and Kathrin, who are in the same class. Like most of their classmates at the local grammar school who do not live at the boarding school, the three take the bus together to a neighbouring village every day. They use the journey to catch up on the latest gossip and talk about love.

Paula is strongly attracted to her classmate Charlotte. But Charlotte is dating Michael, and the two seem happy together. To take her mind off things, Paula starts seeing her friend Tim, perhaps becoming more involved than is good for him. What Paula does not realise is just how often Charlotte thinks about her. And when nobody expects it, Lilli enters the picture. Longing to be desired, she shows little regard for herself or others. More than anything, Lilli wants to seduce Paula.