Frauenzimmer

This documentary tells the story of three grandmothers who earn a living as prostitutes. Christel, Paula and Karolina either work in their own apartment, in a brothel, or receive clients at a dominatrix studio. They have no desire to justify what they do, nor do they make a show of their profession. These three women are engaged in a constant merry-go-round of slipping into different identities, selling dreams and trying to manage their own private life. Their multifaceted personalities make it clear just how differently they go about their trade, and what made them choose to earn their bread as a sex worker. The film provides an insight in to the lives of Christel, Paula and Karolina and their sometimes surprisingly middle-class routine. These women are extremely frank and open in the way they allow the viewers into their lives. Self-confident and proud, sometimes without saying a word at others loquacious, but often with plenty of humour, they tell us what being a sex worker means to them. They also tell us about how much real love – the kind that isn’t for sale – they have to give. A film about emotions, in a profession that requires you to conceal your emotions beneath a façade of makeup and well-rehearsed sentences; a film that is also about growing old.