Growing up, with all its pain, confusion, and exhilaration, is an experience that confronts young people everywhere. It is about learning the rules and following them or choosing to challenge them, staying in the realm of your family or breaking away, and either accepting or fighting your designated role in society.
Identity Negotiation examines in Kaliningrad, the former Prussian city of Königsberg a new generation of young people as they navigate their identities. Once the easternmost city in the German Reich, this is now the westernmost city in the Russian Federation. Following the Soviet annexation during World War II, the region was rebuilt in a Soviet ideology. During the Cold War it was a military zone that was closed to foreigners.
Now sandwiched between EU members Poland and Lithuania, this region’s new isolation gives it unique potential due to its proximity to western Europe. Identity Negotiation is a portrait of a city that is coming to terms with its conflicted past. The youth coexists with their city and its monuments, as they navigate their complicated history into their own future.