Synopsis
While working as a cook, forester and car mechanic in the GDR, Norbert, Raimund and Eberhard spied for the West between the 1950s and 80s. They tell their extraordinary stories for the first time.
The era of espionage during the Cold War is the stuff of countless novels and films. But little is known about the real spies. Some have passed away, many avoid the public because they are obliged to remain silent even after their active years. We tracked down and interviewed on camera three former western agents in the East. Norbert, 64, Raimund, 82, and Eberhard, 74, worked for different reasons for the CIA and German intelligence service BND between the 1950s and 1980s. While leading middle-class lives in East Germany as a cook, forester and car mechanic, they monitored military institutions and met political leaders such as Honecker and the young Vladimir Putin. All three were exposed and imprisoned. The three former western spies talk about their work for the first time. With the help of previously unshown historical footage from the Stasi archives, private photos and sound recordings, we delve deeply into the lives of three extraordinary personalities and shed light on a hitherto unexplored aspect of German-German history. The three men also meet for the first time in this film – a meeting the BND has referred to as exceptionally rare.
