Two gifted street soccer players from a working-class area of Amsterdam dream of a career in professional soccer, but what makes them excel in the street, for the time being makes them too small for top-class sport.
In a game of street soccer, a perfect 'panna' (putting the ball through one's opponent's legs) is the greatest humiliation imaginable. Mitchell and Said, two boys from the Amsterdam working-class quarter of Geuzenveld, are very skilled players. But panna alone does not bring in enough money. That is why the boys try to advance to professional soccer. But people in the world of pro soccer do not appreciate all the characteristics that make someone a street soccer star - wilfulness, whimsicality and irascibility. Self-control, perseverance and adaptability are at least as important.
This empathetic documentary follows Mitchell and Said on their tough road to professional soccer. Their environment is also duly addressed. The contrast between the two boys, who excel together at a cage tournament in Paradiso, is big. If one is too slack, the other one is too aggressive. In our society, talent alone is insufficient, we learn from Panna!
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Zeppers Film & TV
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