‘Coming Out” is a unique part of queer history being the first and only gay feature film made in East Germany.  And if that is not enough, it actually premiered on November 9th 1989 …. the day the Berlin Wall fell.

The story centers on a young teacher Philipp (Matthias Freihof) who enters a relationship with a colleague, Tanja (Dagmar Manzel), who eventually gets pregnant.  However, an unexpected visit by Tanja’s gay friend Jakob (Axel Wandtke) sends Philipp into a tailspin of doubt, which leads him to explore his identity in the gay bars of East Berlin.

It’s a tough story to watch for Philipp’s personal and professional lives crumble into disarray because of his struggles with his sexuality, leaving him alone at the end of the film.  However, he is shown to be content and assured in his own identity.

Incidentally in East Germany, male homosexuality was decriminalized in 1968, but it remained largely a taboo in public life.

(Coming Out DVD is available on Amazon )