“Home Stories”, interview with director Eva Trobisch

February 20, 2026

Eva Trobisch on Home Stories, a coming of age story about identity, family and East Germany

“Home Stories”, interview with director Eva Trobisch Chiara Nicoletti

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After her second film, “Ivo“, premiered in the Encounters section of the Berlinale and received the Heiner Carow Prize in 2024, German director Eva Trobisch is back at the Berlinale, this time in competition, with Home Stories.

A coming-of-age story, a story about identity, a family story

Starring Frida Hornemann and Max Riemelt, the film plays out as a coming-of-age story, as it follows Lea, a sixteen-year-old girl who is selected for a talent show—an experience that forces her to present herself to the world, and to present her family as well.

She comes from East Germany, from the provinces, with all their contradictions and inherited legacies. Using this as a springboard, the film expands into the story of a man and a woman who are no longer together but share parenthood (Lea’s father and mother), the story of a small-town hotel and of Lea’s grandparents who run it while trying to save it from crisis.

Ultimately, “Home Stories” is a film that questions who we are and what image of ourselves we present to the world, at a time when media exposure increasingly pushes us into visibility after we have long been invisible.

A film for all audiences

Precisely because of its many layers and nuances, “Home Stories” can be viewed from multiple angles, and it can also be seen as a film that portrays Germany—East Germany in particular, which is less often depicted on screen.

As a filmmaker who comes from those places, Eva Trobisch paid meticulous attention to the mise-en-scène and to ensuring that her characters remain true to the traits and temperaments of those who grew up in that part of Germany.

Plot

When at the audition for a TV talent show, sixteen-year-old Lea is asked, “Who are you and what makes you special?”, she is at a loss what to say and begins to look for a suitable self. Back home in provincial East Germany, things are complicated. Her parents broke up recently. Her grandparents are constantly bickering, worn down by the pressures of keeping the family hotel afloat. She looks up to her aunt, whose cultural aspirations don’t make her universally popular in her small town. And her best friend Bonny only has eyes for Lea’s cousin Edgar. As her TV appearance approaches and a camera crew comes to town to shoot the introductory reel, what home story can Lea stitch together from the fragments of her life?

Written by: Chiara Nicoletti

Guest

Eva Trobisch