On the Outside

The little boy

There is often a certain connection between a character and the author. That's the only way the author can truly bring the character to life as a real person. To me, Erik is a particularly good example of this.

21 August 2026
3 min read

Erik

A particular turning point marks Erik’s life: his existence in the wild comes to an end following an accident, after which he is „carried“ into the world of humans. There, he develops without any major problems into a civilized human being, whose „uncivilized past“ has been encapsulated within him.

Subconsciously, this level remains active and pushes the boy into a solitary, withdrawn attitude. His existence is subconsciously overshadowed by the feeling that he is living in a foreign world.

Our connection

Erik experiences an alienation from nature - one that is already imposed on children and adolescents by societal pressures and that encapsulates something within us as human beings. Something that is more primal and pure than anything our modern world can offer us.

Drehbuchauschnitt — The scene that best captures the point.

His perspective on our world is fascinating because, like us, he is losing something that is generally considered to be of little value. Something that isn’t truly measurable, like money or clicks. It is the connection to where we come from. To who we are. Something we are slowly forgetting more and more. Something that is being violently destroyed by some of our fellow human beings.

Being aware of this and witnessing how that sense of authenticity was being torn away from me was also a disturbing feeling for me in my youth. School obligations and dealing with government agencies took up almost all my time. Endless arguments with parents, teachers, and superiors thwarted every attempt to rediscover that sense of authenticity, while the world around me slowly grew crazier and crazier.

Erik himself cannot withstand this kind of violence. He represents the little boy inside me who gradually gave up and was forced to die. My mother once told me that I had always seemed somehow sad as a child. Today I know why. I had to write this story. For the little boy inside me.

Today, I'm the father of two children - Theo, 8, and Sophie, 13. My little boy is so much like me in so many ways. I'll do everything I can to make sure they both stay happy.