Zwischenstation, was one of the two films to be screened at the Festival, that featured homeless men who collect scrap bottles for a living, as their subjects. The film derives its title from their brief stay under a Munich City bridge. Or perhaps, it's about what the people passing by are compelled to do as they witness these men, Bernd & Zoltan, living out the best of their lives (in their own words) as vagrants. And while they're at it, they appear to be more content than most of the cityfolk.

The film opens on a wintery morning with a very delightful Zoltan making a snow sculpture as a fascinating hobby, turning it into an art installation for the passersby to have a look and be compelled to leave a penny. Bernd is comparatively quiet and a bold man, who isn't afraid to bluntly ask people observing their Philosopher's shrine to be generous. The shrine is made of some well-known European philosophers' lesser-known quotes and some original, learned and experienced ones written on scrap cardboard pieces. The film shows how adored they are by these passersby, who leave them an underpass full of valuables. 

As the film moves on, we learn of their pasts and prospective futures. Bernd had a girlfriend, whose passing away led him to living in disbelief for an year and then finding solace in this modest lifestyle. These homeless men give a couple of dogs a home, have friends who visit them regularly, and people who provide them with food and other necessities for their survival. Bernd has plans to move back to the village he came from, where he has a roof to live under. And we see these plans come through by the end of the film.

Through its epilogue, the film shows that this didn't work out well for him, and he plans to move back under the bridge. Zoltan instead gets displaced by the local police out of concerns regarding the upcoming flood season, which works out better for him, as it makes him mobile and he's not limited to a single underpass anymore. He can have a new home everyday, every night. With all his material belongings packed onto his vehicle, he is always on the go.

Through Zwischenstation, director Bambach manages to gives his audiences an intimate peek into their lifestyle, something that many may desire inspite of hardships it comes with, without actually exoticising it. The film humbles you, and changes the way we look at homeless people on our own way home. It makes you wonder, if these might be the greatest philosophers of our time.