Talk Is Cheap

Mondig Zuid

This documentary series follows three young people in Rotterdam-Zuid, each of whom is grappling in their own way with the trials of growing up. Tamia is an articulate girl with strong opinions, who wants to be a spoken-word artist, for which she is relentlessly teased: “They call me extra, unnecessary, different.” Selena has a mouth full of braces, a distant sister, and a father who has a clumsy way of showing his love. She really wants to spend time with the whole family, and to have a good time together. “Nobody has manners here.” Darlin, who was born on Curaçao and grew up in the Dominican Republic, wants nothing other than to work to support his mother, who has serious health problems: “I want to finish school and not get a criminal record.”