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A large expanse of water is disturbed by gentle ripples as Eva calmly swims a length with her measured and confident motions. Turn, another length, turn ... as she passes Nina and Jule. All in their early 30’s, Eva, Nina and Jule are longtime best friends. They meet regularly for swimming and to have a gab about life... Eva, straight, confident and successful works as a judge, is a wonderful friend, lives together with her boyfriend Klaas... only one thing misses to make her life perfect: To marry Klaas and found a family with him! While pushing Klaas into proposing and plunging into excessive wedding preparations, Eva starts to put her friends on the right tracks, too. She encourages Jule to further her career and to emancipate from co-working with her boyfriend Richard. Eva also tries to match Nina, who is working in a night club, having one affair after the other, with the right man for life. A divorce case at court challenges her settled conviction of always beeing infallible. The more Eva tries to make things perfect, the more they escape from her control and all of her obsessively good intentions finally turn against her, calling her friendship, love and moral values into question.
Swimming is a dramatic comedy set in winter in Berlin, city of constant change, possibilities, hopes and appearances. From the last golden autumn days into the muddy spring, Berlin winter provides a poetic and absurd setting, urging people inside, focussing on their own wellbeing, while keeping up appearances. Biedermeier in a hipper shade. In their early 30’s, Eva, Jule and Nina are all modern women, standing with both feet on the ground. Still, their concepts of life differ and all of them struggle with expectations on how to live a fulfilled life – being successful in both work and private life at the same time. Swimming evokes a reflection on female role models and female friendship, on love, loyalty and self-fulfilment. The long grown friendship and the swimming ritual build the spine around which the triangular constellation of the women provides a constant dynamic change of forces, loyalties and alliances throughout the events. Eva unconsciously tries to correspond perfectly to all expectations...until she collapses under the pressure. She betrays her friends, Klaasand her own moral values. She finally comes to realize that being perfect is not possible, and – more important – not necessary to be content. The three women learn to trust and live up to their own needs rather than to external expectations.
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