The Fuel Filter

In a post-industrial Romanian town, a mechanic is running a subsistence garage. Stereotypically decorated with posters of naked women on its moldy walls, the garage also serves as a dining hall and the favourite playground for his seven-year old son, Arpiti. The boy finds more joy in getting his hands stained with motor oil than spending time with other children or going to school. Told in a nostalgic observational register, the film juxtaposes the activity of the men with the kid’s feeble attempt to replicate it, drawing a romantic contrast between childhood dreams and adult jobs. Ignored the entire day, the boy eventually wins the attention of his father. Will the man abandon the big engines to repair his son’s broken ATV?