Four directors - four styles - four episodes, all relating the events of a single night which has entered the history books: August 12-13, 1961. There are thousands of complex narratives connected with the frontier drawn through the middle of Berlin and each episode relates the story of a difficult decision made on that night:

• Episode 1: "Phoenix" ("Phönix") 
• Episode 2: "The Test" ("Die Prüfung")
• Episdoe 3: "Materna"
• Episode 4: "Two Wills" ("Der große und der kleine Willi")