At Eye Level

Michael, 11-year-old, lives in a children's home and has to fight every day to win the respect of the other kids. Then one day, he finds out who his father is and writes him a letter. His dad, Tom, happens to be a midget and is even shorter than Michael, but he wants to accept the challenge of fatherhood. For Michael, Tom's handicap is a disaster, as it's, the opposite of the manliness and strength he envisioned his father to have. When the other kids find out, Michael's life becomes hell and he runs away from the children's home. With nowhere else to go, he moves in with Tom. Tom is new to this fatherhood thing but tries his best, while Michael tries to hide his embarrassment and shame from his new friends he meets at a local skating rink. This forces Tom, who had coped well with his "differentness" so far in his life, to confront his handicap head on. (Berlinale)