The Ploy

In 2002 three NASA interns stole over 1 million dollars worth of moon rocks with plans to sell them over the Internet. They were of course apprehended by the FBI and subsequently fired from NASA. What convinced these intelligent and driven youths, hand-picked by today's top scientists, that they could get away with this crime against science and the government? With names and incidents changed to protect the innocent, the guilty (and the embarrassed), this is the unofficial true story.

When Milanese salesman Piero witnesses the mob killing of a prominent magistrate, he testifies in court. The government puts him into the witness protection program, but the traumatic experiences he suffers leaves him wondering if he should have remained silent.

On January 6, 2021, the assault on the Capitol by supporters of Donald Trump caused the death of five people, including a policeman, and provoked astonishment. Described as an insurrection, a coup d'état, a putsch, it marks a break in American history. Tracing the facts with precision, here is an analysis of the consequences of this attempted coup de force on American democracy. Nearly a year after this violent intrusion, many Republicans in Congress continue to support Trump, and his candidacy in the 2024 elections is not excluded. Is the ongoing U.S. congressional investigation helping Americans overcome the trauma or, on the contrary, increasing their dissension?

A small, idyllic town near Bremerhaven. Katja Winzer, who runs her own practice as a physiotherapist, lives here with her eight-year-old son Tobias and her partner Jürgen Behrendt on a former farm. Tobias is a bright, independent and reliable boy who has a very intimate and trusting relationship with both his mother and Jürgen. When he couldn't come home from playing one evening, Katja started a round-robin campaign among friends and drove the boy's way home - with no result. Finally she turns on the police. Since the girl Levke was murdered by an unknown person in the region just a few months earlier, a large contingent of officials and volunteers immediately set off a sensational search. The desperate Katja is placed at the side of Chief Inspector Roman Maartens: The experienced police officer and family man has psychological training to look after family members in such cases and to seal them off from the sensational press. Days go by without Tobias being found. Days become weeks - between waiting, hoping and self-reproach, Katja's life is slowly but surely turning into a nightmare. While Jürgen tries to cope with the situation with alcohol and his suspicious behavior is targeted by the investigators, Roman Katja stands by her side. He even threatens to neglect his own family through his commitment and compassion. After the largest search operation in the history of the Federal Republic of Germany, weeks after Tobias' disappearance, remained unsuccessful, the police command had no choice but to abandon the search. Katja feels betrayed and disappointed. It wasn't until the sex offender who also murdered little Levke was caught that Roman came across a hot lead. He succeeds in persuading the emotionally unstable man to make a confession. For Katja this turn seems too late: she no longer sees any meaning in her life. She doesn't want to go on living without her son.