Marcel Winatschek

Stars of a New Generation

I’m 31 now and I don’t have much use for the German YouTube ecosystem. Quick cuts, pseudo-funny outtakes, confused faces I’d love to throw in a bucket of acne cream and send back to the unemployment line. But you have to give them this: they’re the stars of a new generation.

Oscar-nominated director Nanette Burstein followed LeFloid, Joyce Ilg, and whoever the other guy was, either standing around at home and verbally vomiting into a camera or getting dragged through sweaty crowds of truant teenagers, and made something actually worth watching out of it.

What did I learn? It’s completely irrelevant what established adults—people who’ve already had their first time—think about people like Bibi, Sami Slimani, or Y-Titty. The only thing that matters is whether Chantal in seventh grade in Leipzig thinks they’re cool. She’s the future. Unfortunately.