Smell of Burnt Milk (LUXFILMFEST)

Justine BAUER, 79 min, 2024 - Germany

Against the backdrop of an idyllic German summer, a young farmer named Katinka harbors ambitions of holding onto her family’s farm. Yet her dream is challenged by the realities of modern agriculture, a sector beleaguered by economic hardships and ongoing decline. Unique for its focus on the plight of young women farmers, Smell of Burnt Milk charts a distinctive path by toying with documentary conventions to create a portrayal of rural life which, though fictional, comes across as both authentic and improvised. Its lyrical and languid visuals belie the family’s uncertain and unstable future in agriculture.