Erika Kohut is a pianist, teaching music. Schubert and Schumann are her forte, but she's not quite at concert level. She's approaching middle age, living with her mother who is domineering then submissive; Erika is a victim then combative. With her students she is severe. She visits a sex shop to watch DVDs; she walks a drive-in theater to stare at couples having sex. Walter is a self-assured student with some musical talent; he auditions for her class and is forthright in his attraction to her. She responds coldly then demands he let her lead. Next she changes the game with a letter, inviting him into her fantasies. How will he respond; how does sex have power over our other faculties? Written by jhailey@hotmail.com

With the birthday party of the most beautiful girl in the whole class coming in less than three weeks and the beginning of the summer holidays, Maik, a diffident 14-year-old teenager, has definitely a lot on his mind. To make matters worse, Maik's mother, a caring but alcoholic tennis nut, is in-and-out of the beauty farm aka the rehab facility, and his father, who is a real estate developer, is simply indifferent. Under those circumstances, the unexpected arrival of a new classmate, Tschick, will create quite a stir when the two class rejects will boldly decide to hit the road in an old "borrowed" light blue Lada, going from uncool to cool in a split second. As they set off on an unforgettable joyride in East Germany's great outdoors, without a cell phone or a map, the boys will learn about self-confidence, mutual friendship and the excitement of youthful love, in what will be, hands down, the best summer ever. Written by Nick Riganas

A sea captain makes a bet in a cafe with a friend that he will marry the first woman who walks in.