Experiencing Interruptions?

Paperland

Liza, a Berlin-based millennial, lives a stable life until her partner, Andi, brings two strangers home overnight. The next day, Andi is gone. The strangers present a valid lease to the police and claim the apartment as their own. Suddenly, Liza is a trespasser in her own life. As the situation escalates and the authorities side with the "correct" paperwork, she is thrust into a cold, bureaucratic vacuum by the very system designed to protect her.

  • Yurdakul Peksen
    Director
  • Yurdakul Peksen
    Writer
  • Yurdakul Peksen
    Producer
  • Carolin Wiedenbröker
    Key Cast
  • Alina Levshin
    Key Cast
  • Fabian Raabe
    Key Cast
  • Eric Cordes
    Key Cast
  • Project Title (Original Language):
    Paperland
  • Project Type:
    Short, Web / New Media
  • Genres:
    Drama, Dark Comedy, Thriller
  • Runtime:
    29 minutes 43 seconds
  • Completion Date:
    March 17, 2026
  • Production Budget:
    11,400 EUR
  • Country of Origin:
    Germany
  • Country of Filming:
    Germany
  • Language:
    German
  • Shooting Format:
    Digital
  • Aspect Ratio:
    16:9
  • Film Color:
    Color
  • First-time Filmmaker:
    No
  • Student Project:
    No
  • Digital Cinema Package:
    Unavailable
Director Biography - Yurdakul Peksen

Grew up in a family affected by political and ethnic persecution, Yurdakul Peksen developed an early sensitivity to justice, identity, conflict and human behavior — themes that continue to shape his work.
Born in 1979 in Turkey, he spent his childhood moving frequently due to his parents’ forced relocations. After the 1980 military coup, his father was compelled to leave his job, and the family eventually settled in Istanbul, where he lived until moving to Germany at 21 to pursue his studies.
Before turning to film, Yurdakul spent four years in the corporate sector, which clarified where his purpose lay. Since 2013, he has contributed to more than 30 national and international productions, including work as assistant director to İlker Çatak.
His films observe people navigating everyday power struggles, social systems, and moral choices with subtle irony and humanist insight.

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Director Statement

PAPERLAND explores how bureaucracy, capitalism, and social coldness can erode our existence to grotesque extremes. Visually and dramaturgically, the film moves through a semi-surreal landscape while remaining anchored in reality, drawing on the intimate social realism of The Maid(John Wells, et al.) and the grotesque playfulness of Lanthimos.

The core of this project is deeply personal, rooted in a surreal legal battle over my own home. After being unexpectedly sued based on entirely fabricated and absurd claims, I was forced to realize how easily a stable existence can vanish when caught in the gears of the judiciary. This experience brought me face-to-face with two sobering German sayings. The first: "Vor Gericht und auf hoher See ist man in Gottes Hand" (In court, as on the high seas, one is in God's hands)—a testament to the total unpredictability of the law. The second warns that to find justice, one needs three sacks: one full of papers, one full of money, and one full of patience. In my experience, most people don't even have two of the three.

PAPERLAND is my response to a system where, if you are unlucky, the "correct" paperwork can erase your identity in an instant. While this film stands as a singular, high-tension study of powerlessness, it serves as the visceral opening chapter for a feature-length odyssey (currently in active development). It is an invitation to question what remains of our humanity when arbitrary systems no longer see us as human, but as a glitch in the legal code.