Martina Priessner

The film 650 Words questions eight people from different regions of Turkey, who are desperately waiting to be able to live with their partner in Germany. Before that, however, they must acquire a Goethe Institute ‘Start Deutsch 1’ certificate in their homeland, which is the requirement to apply for a family visa. For this language test they require an active vocabulary of 300 German words and a passive vocabulary of 650 words. Without the German certificate they cannot submit a visa application. And even if they successfully pass the test, the visa can still be refused. For the protagonists, the language course is a journey they undergo in order to reach their nearest and dearest in Germany. Some must give up their jobs, others must first learn to read and write. Through anecdotes, utopia and stories of loss, their fate becomes clear and a story emerges about the complicated relationship between two countries.