- The dream of two young men to become sailors collides with the harsh realities of life in East Germany.
- In 1982, friends Cornelis and Andreas came to Rostock to work in the shipyard. The port of Rostock is the only international port in the GDR and both young men dream of traveling the world as merchant marine sailors. But the hoped-for promotion didn't materialize even after three years. Frustrated, Cornelis and Andreas let the State Security recruit them. They are supposed to spy on their friend Matze, who works as a foreman at the shipyard. His stubborn attitude has made him suspicious. It is assumed that he is planning to flee the Republic. In return for their snooping, Cornelis and Andreas are to be made sailors. In fact, the two of them manage to find out about Matze's escape plans. But then Cornelis has pangs of conscience. He doesn't want to base his dream on a betrayal. But the friends won't get out of the pact with the Stasi that easily. Andreas is put under massive pressure by the secret service colonel Seler - and betrays Matze, who immediately ends up in custody. Cornelis is now also feeling the full force of the GDR state authority. Seler threatens to deport his great love, the Vietnamese Mai. Nevertheless, Cornelis steadfastly refuses to cooperate with the Stasi. Together with Mai he wants to flee to West Germany. A plan that only Andreas can thwart.—ARD Das Erste
- GDR in the 1980s. Two East German dock workers dream an impossible dream: of sailing out to the sea. SHORES OF HOPE tells the story of two East-German dock workers, Cornelis Schmidt and Andreas Hornung, who, in the 1980s, dream an impossible dream: of sailing out to sea. Their lives take a fateful turn when Cornelis falls in love with the young Vietnamese woman Phuong Mai and a fellow worker is betrayed.
A story about destinies in a repressive nation, about hope, longing and disillusionment, and about what one is ready to sacrifice for the big dream.
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