Here We Come

Break-dancing in the GDR. In the early 1980s, not even the Berlin Wall could stop the western Hip Hop movement being discovered by the youth of the communistic state. Inspired by the U.S. film Beat Street teenagers like “Magic Meyer”, “Beatschmidt” and others started practicing brand new styles and powermoves obsessively. Nothing could stop their enthusiasm, not even trouble with the police or the Stasi. For them, the hip-hop culture became a very important means of dissociating themselves from the usual GDR clichés. Being a B-Boy meant freedom and rebellion. They created something of their own, as they copied and improvised break-dance moves and customised their clothing. The film reviews the development of the movement from its grassroots to performances on some of East Germany’s largest stages. Director Nico Raschick, who has been working on this documentary since December 2003, follows the youngsters from the streets into communist youth clubs and portrays the changes the movement underwent after the wall came down. More than twenty years of (East) German history is told by a generation that simply hasn’t been asked before. (DOK.fest München)