The Unlikely Encounter

About the movie

Set in Windhoek area in today's Namibia, The Unlikely Encounter is a drama with sarcastic humor about relational difficulties between father and son. When the womanizing and absent father, Martin Keller, sees his financial and professional universe collapse, he is also confronted with the equally fragile nature of his marital life. His wife, Joann, is a housewife who struggles to have her artistic talent recognized. In the meantime, her teenage son reacts in a rebellious way to his father's absence by deciding to "come out of the closet" and take the 'father's chair'. The unexpected arrival of an enigmatic uncle of Martin, Bill Keller, rekindles the hope of mending the conflicting expectations of the family triangle. The sensitive and experienced Bill, however, has its own understanding of each character's real needs and orchestrate, in his own way, an unexpected outcome. Amidst a contemporary and universal family plot, the story unfolds historical and cultural constraints rooted in the Namibian society, such as the genocide of the Herero people perpetrated by the German colonial empire, as well as highlights the importance of reconciliation.