Coming out

"Coming Out" was the first DEFA film that dealt with the topic of homosexuality in the GDR. Philipp who is latently gay works as a teacher. His colleague Tanja falls in love with him and he moves in with her. At her place, he meets a gay friend who once had been his boyfriend before Philipp′s parents insisted that he had to leave him. In this situation, he again becomes aware that he had repressed his sexual orientation for years. He secretly visits a gay bar and falls in love with Matthias but keeps it a secret from Tanja for a long time. At the same time, he does not tell Matthias that he is living with a woman. The situation escalates when Tanja observes Philipp in a tender embrace with Matthias. Now, Philipp has to come out of the closet, both toward his girlfriend Tanja and also toward his boyfriend Matthias. Deeply disappointed, Matthias tries to commit suicide.