Poyedem s toboy v Makao

A quay with massive silos. Slowly, a huge bulk carrier berths to unload its cargo of soy beans. A woman's voice says this could be the opening scene of a feature film in which photographer Lea has been commissioned to record the energy transition in the western docks area of Amsterdam. Lea's younger days are behind her, she is a renowned photographer, she has no partner, no children. We never get to see Lea, we just hear her voice, which is also the voice of the filmmaker. The filmmaker also reads out fragments of the film script, looks at the world around her through the eyes of the fictitious Lea, tries to find the images that will suit the feature film. On the principle that every transition is also a personal transition, two story lines are interwoven in Hemelsleutel/Key of Heaven, a documentary line and a fictitious, feature film line. On the one hand we see the western docks area and the changes taking place there: the dismantling of the Hemweg 8 coal-fired power station, the storage tanks for petrol and kerosene preparing for the switch to other products, the changes in concrete production, the storage yards for coal which is no longer supplied to the power station. On the other hand the film follows Lea, who looks around and records what seems of interest to her in this industrial landscape where there is also still room for temporary natural spaces, and where over 50-year-old white poplars still line some of the roads. But Lea, too, is going through a transition. As she gets older, she realizes how the world is changing and how she must try to relate to this. Looking back, she is confronted by things that did not go right. When Lea attends a secondary school reunion, she is regarded with a certain admiration. She moves around with ease and flair, until someone mentions Boudewijn. After graduating from school they had remained friends, exchanging letters, until Boudewijn disappeared. Lea feels uncomfortable when an old classmate asks her about him. A few days later, when Lea shows the photographs to her client, he is impressed by her work. "Every transition is also a personal transition," he says. These words stick in Lea's mind. She tries to survey her life - as well as the western docks area. For the latter, she needs a high vantage point. To find it, she gets help from Jakob who, as Head of Infrastructure, knows the area through and through. He is some 20 years younger than Lea, married with two young daughters. He is accompanied by his trainee Nourdin. Together with Jakob, Lea visits a concrete plant. An employee explains that there are new concrete making processes with less CO2 emissions. The view from the silos is impressive, but not quite what Lea is looking for, as it is limited by the high towers. On the way back, Jakob unexpectedly turns into some rough terrain. "Just want to have a look at the water birds," he says. Lea likes this. In complete silence, they sit and listen to the melancholy whistles of the wigeons. Lea also visits Leonard, an elderly, celebrated filmmaker with an extensive social network. Still quite ambitious, he is working on a project about space and time. He promises to help Lea with her search, but when he returns from his research travels, he dies. Lea talks to his wife Johanna about finding a way to relate to death. During a walk, Lea tells her sister Roelie about the reunion. Does she remember Boudewijn? Of course, he used to come to their home. Roelie always thought Boudewijn was a little peculiar. We see a school photograph of two girls, seated next to each other at a school desk. One girl smiles happily, the other has a serious look on her face. Might this be Roelie and Lea, we hear the filmmaker say. Or is it the filmmaker herself with her sister? Fiction blurs with reality. A summer heat wave: the shimmering heat over a sandy, vacant plot of land makes Lea feel scared and insecure. In her confusion, she hears the voices of dead people who were dear to her, such as her father, her old friend Leonard, and her life companion Martin. Lea decides to reread the letters Boudewijn sent her before he disappeared. During the short moments that Lea and Jakob meet again, there is a spark between them. One night Jakob finally has time to accompany Lea on a night tour of the docks area. There is a strong sense of intimacy. Lea takes pictures, carefully and meticulously, and talks about Boudewijn. About how she always feels she is falling short and wants to come to terms with herself before it is too late. Getting back in the car, Jakob and Lea kiss passionately. It takes them by surprise. It's best if we don't do this again, they say, embarrassed. Late summer. Lea has reread all of Boudewijn's letters without really finding an answer to her questions. How well can you actually know another person? Do you let the other person get close enough to really know you? How can she make peace with herself and forgive herself for what she - possibly - should have done better? Meanwhile Jakob has found the high vantage point she has been looking for: a tower crane. Together with the crane operator, she climbs all the way up to the cabin. Jakob remains downstairs. It is quite a climb to get up there. We see it through the subjective lens of the filmmaker. The view is brilliant, but Lea realizes that her goal is an illusion. In between the intercom directions for the crane operator, Lea hears the voices again. They are all there: Boudewijn, her father, others. Consolation, love, and friendship are the key words. A bird flies past. The camera takes over its perspective. We fly away. Everything is always changing, transition is permanent, there is no final goal, there will always be a longing.