Winners - Schools Screening

Sieger Sein

Eleven-year-old Mona and the rest of her Kurdish family have fled Syria and ended up in Berlin. Everything is different here and Mona misses her home, her street football friends and especially her aunt Helin. 

When a dedicated teacher recognises Mona’s special talent for football and selects her for the girls’ team, things are not getting easier at once. Mona is quickly identified as an outsider and playing in a team with the other girls turns out to be more difficult than expected. Each of them is fighting their own battles but one thing soon becomes clear: they will only win if they all play together. 

2015 saw hundreds of thousands of people fleeing across the sea and land to escape war and persecution. Ten years on and many of the families with young children who arrived in European countries have made new lives, often experiencing countless struggles. An engaging and fast-paced film, Winners is inspired by the real-life story of its Iraqi-born director. The film provides a window into the lives of young refugees in a new country, but it’s also an ode to teachers who believe “difficult” students deserve a second chance. Full of nuance and emotion, this is a necessary film for young learners to appreciate the challenges refugees experience and develop their empathy towards them.