School Full of Fish

Thirteen-year-old Hugo really doesn’t like being in front of the camera. Nevertheless, he allows himself to be filmed during the tense transition to high school. He’s determined to overcome something in himself so that he’ll be able to deal with all the stimuli that constantly bombard him. Hugo thinks a lot. His spot-on observations and analyses help him to understand the world around him, but sometimes they get in the way. He finds peace in the Wii game Endless Ocean. He knows this environment and moves smoothly among the exceptional deep-sea fish – it’s a world that fascinates him. He’s also fearless when diving, performing a measured double twist from the seven-meter board. The perseverance Hugo develops when diving and his particular worldview gradually help him find his footing in his new surroundings. “You never do a dive perfectly the first time. You have to practice and practice, until you can finally do it.” The same applies to his first weeks in high school. You find the way by getting lost a few times. (International Documentary Film Festival Amsterdam)