What Is Drifting About?
The premise of Drifting in 352 words, with nothing given away. The full story follows below.
In the hum of an Israeli city where every street seems to pulse with unspoken expectations, Robi lives under the roof of his aging grandparents and helps run their modest grocery store. By day he moves through familiar routines—stocking shelves, strolling through the park, and sharing quiet moments with friends—while the city around him teems with fleeting encounters that never quite feel like home. The backdrop is a place that offers casual connection but lacks a visible gay scene, leaving him to navigate a social landscape that feels both familiar and strangely foreign.
_ Robi_ carries two intense passions: a yearning to create a cheerful film that could one day claim an Oscar, and a deep desire to find a lasting, authentic love with another man. As a second‑generation Holocaust survivor, he grapples with the weight of history and a name that marks him as an outsider in his own country. This sense of being “a tiger in a cage” colors his aspirations, turning everyday moments into quiet battles between hope and the feeling that he does not fully belong.
The family dynamic adds another layer of tension. Robi’s grandmother fills her days with German women’s magazines and the waltz of Strauss, her worldview still framed by the scars of the past and a lingering mistrust of Arab neighbors. She tolerates his sexuality with a weary silence, preferring to steer conversations toward the conventional promise of a wife and children. Robi’s father, a stoic Holocaust survivor with a heavy accent, echoes similar expectations, insisting that a stable family is the only respectable path. Meanwhile, an ex‑girlfriend hints at reconciliation, even as Robi finds himself drawn to a man named Han, whose own life has been reshaped by societal pressure.
The film captures a mood that is both intimate and restless, blending the melancholy of unfulfilled dreams with moments of quiet humor and tender observation. It invites viewers into Robi’s world—a place where personal ambition, cultural legacy, and the search for belonging intersect, leaving the audience to wonder how he will reconcile the fragments of his identity amidst the ever‑present hum of the city.
What Happens in Drifting?
The complete story of Drifting, from the first scene to the last, in 342 words (about 1 minute). Spoilers throughout. Names in the text link to 1 cast member page.
Spoilers ahead
Robbie is a young gay man who lives with his grandmother and works in her grocery store. His mother left for Germany to run a restaurant, and his contact with his father is minimal.
He has two obsessions: to make a movie that will be the first cheerful film to win an Oscar, and to pursue men. He feels like a foreign immigrant in his own country, not only because of his name but also because he is a second-generation Holocaust survivor. Robbie lives like a tiger in a cage.
By day, he handles the shop, takes walks in the park, catches up with friends, and by night he ventures into Independence Park to seek sexual encounters, including visits to club bathrooms, and even brings two Palestinian terrorists to his home, with whom he has sex.
Robbie’s grandmother fills her days with German women’s magazines, and she plays Rummy to the wail of Strauss. Her stance in the family’s life is to label Arabs as terrorists, and she is ashamed of Robbie yet tolerates his homosexuality, preferring to ignore the men he brings home and avoiding questions about his frequent park visits. To her, his sexual orientation feels like a stain on him and the entire family. When upset, she yells and asks when he will find a nice woman, marry, and start a family.
His ex-girlfriend would like to reconcile, but Robbie has fallen for a man named Han, who succumbed to social pressure and married a woman.
Robbie’s father, a Holocaust survivor with a heavy foreign accent, tries to explain that the norm is a family with a wife and children, and that gay men grow old alone. In one of the film’s boldest scenes, Robbie confronts a high school friend and pours out his anger about past bullying and how his friend feared being laughed at for staying friends with the “degenerate.”
The story concludes with Robbie failing to attract investors for his own film, and he begins to come to terms with his identity as a gay man.
Drifting Timeline: Every Key Event in Order
12 key events in the order they happen, from “Family background: abandonment and estrangement” to “Acceptance: coming to terms with being gay”. 11 events name a place, across 10 locations.
- 1
Family background: abandonment and estrangement
Robbie grows up with his mother having abandoned him, moving to Germany where she runs a restaurant, and with little contact with his father. This background sets up a persistent sense of displacement as a foreigner in his own country and as the son of a Holocaust survivor. The landscape of his early life haunts his decisions and self-image throughout the story.
Where:Robbie's family
- 2
Daily life in the grandmother's grocery store
By day he works in his grandmother's grocery store, observing her German-influenced world and the quiet prejudices that color his life. He feels caged, living like a tiger in a cage while concealing a truth about his sexuality. The store is the routine that anchors him as he navigates family expectations.
When:Day Where:Grandmother's grocery store
- 3
Robbie's two obsessions: film dream and love for men
Robbie is obsessed with making the first cheerful film to win an Oscar, a dream that fuels his approach to life. At the same time, he pursues men as part of his identity, using sex as a way to feel alive in a culture that shames him. These two obsessions drive both his creativity and his longing for connection.
- 4
Nights in Independence Park
At night, Robbie walks through Independence Park looking for sexual encounters, a ritual that reveals his loneliness and craving for affirmation. The chase for fleeting connections becomes a pattern that clashes with his family’s expectations. The park becomes a stage for his secret life away from his grandmother's gaze.
When:Night Where:Independence Park
- 5
Club encounters and bringing men home
Robbie engages in sexual relations in club bathrooms, a taboo outlet for his desires. The nights escalate as he brings two Palestinian terrorists to his home, sharing a sexual encounter with them. The act confronts him with the risks of living openly and the complexity of his desires.
When:Night Where:City clubs; Robbie's home
- 6
Grandmother's world and nationalism
Grandmother consumes German women's magazines and plays Rummy to Strauss, shaping a narrow worldview. She routinely labels Arabs terrorists and she is ashamed of Robbie, preferring to ignore the men he brings home. Her stance embodies the cultural pressures that push Robbie toward concealment.
Where:Grandmother's home
- 7
Pressure to marry and start a family
When upset, Grandmother yells that Robbie should find a nice woman, marry, and start a family. Her demand underscores the social duty that Robbie is expected to fulfill, increasing the tension between his sexuality and his family’s expectations. The idea of a conventional life becomes a recurring point of conflict.
Where:Grandmother's home
- 8
Love, loss, and social pressure
Robbie falls in love with a man named Han, who ultimately gives in to social pressure and marries a woman. His ex-girlfriend, meanwhile, would like to rekindle their relationship. These relationships expose the power of societal expectations on personal choices.
Where:Various locations
- 9
Father's advice on family and norms
Robbie's father, a Holocaust survivor with a heavy accent, attempts to explain that the norm is a family with a wife and children and that gay men grow old alone. The father's perspective adds a weighty, traditional voice to Robbie's ongoing conflict. The dialogue marks a clash between generations and worldviews.
Where:Robbie's family home
- 10
Confrontation with a high school friend
Robbie runs into a high school friend and vents all his anger about the bullying he endured, accusing him of fear and complicity. The friend admits he avoided their friendship because he feared being laughed at by others. The scene crystallizes the lasting pain of prejudice.
Where:Street/public place
- 11
Investors and the crash of his film dream
Robbie tries to secure investors for his Oscar dream but fails to find backing. The rejection amplifies his sense of isolation and the gulf between his ambitions and reality. The failure becomes a turning point: his identity becomes the resolution, not his film success.
Where:Investors' offices
- 12
Acceptance: coming to terms with being gay
With the dream unfulfilled, Robbie comes to terms with his sexuality and the life he has chosen. The film closes on a note of self-acceptance, even as he remains without investors or mainstream recognition. The final moment focuses on personal truth rather than outward success.
Where:City
Who Are the Main Characters in Drifting?
6 characters, among them Robbie (Jonathan Sagall), Grandmother and Father: who each one is and the part they play in the story. 1 of them link to the actor’s page.
- R(
Robbie (Jonathan Sagall)
Played by Jonathan Sagall
A young gay man living in Tel Aviv who works in his grandmother's grocery store. An immigrant and a second-generation Holocaust survivor, he longs for love and a film career but is constrained by family and societal expectations. He searches for connection in Independence Park and in nightlife, and his relationships reflect the tension between desire and norms. The story ends with him failing to secure investors for his film, arriving at a moment of self-acceptance about who he is.
- 🏳️🌈 LGBTQ
- 🌍 Immigrant
- 🎭 Identity
- G
Grandmother
An elderly woman who reads German women's magazines and plays Rummy to Strauss. She is ashamed of Robbie’s homosexuality but tolerates him, avoiding confronting the deeper questions about his life. Her attitudes mirror the social pressure to adhere to traditional family ideals and maintain outward respectability.
- 👵 Elderly
- 🧭 Tradition
- ⚖️ Family expectations
- F
Father
A Holocaust survivor with a heavy foreign accent who argues that the norm is a wife, children, and a conventional life. He embodies memory and trauma, trying to steer Robbie toward conformity. His rigid stance highlights the difficulty of accepting a son who deviates from accepted norms.
- 🧠 Trauma
- 🕯️ Memory
- ⚖️ Norms
- H
Han
The man Robbie falls for, representing his longing for authentic connection. He caves to social pressure and marries a woman, illustrating how societal expectations can thwart personal happiness. Their relationship underscores the cost of living under rigid norms.
- 💔 Unfulfilled love
- ⚖️ Societal pressure
- E
Ex-girlfriend
Robbie’s ex-girlfriend would like to rekindle their relationship, reflecting Robbie’s ongoing ambivalence about committed relationships and the complexities of his romantic life in a judgmental environment.
- 💔 Ex-partner
- DR
Doron Regev
A high school friend whom Robbie confronts in a moment of anger, recalling bullying and the fear of being laughed at for his sexuality. This memory emphasizes the social sting of stigma during adolescence and its lingering impact.
- 🗣️ Bullying
- 🕰️ Reminiscence
Where and When Is Drifting Set?
Drifting is set in Tel Aviv, Israel and Independence Park. Here is why the place matters to the story.
Where
Tel Aviv, Israel, Independence Park
Drifting unfolds in a contemporary Israeli city anchored by Independence Park and the grandmother's grocery store where Robbie works. The urban landscape blends public spaces of leisure with intimate, tense domestic interiors. The cityscape mirrors Robbie’s struggle to belong as a gay immigrant and son of Holocaust survivors in a society that remains conservative about sexuality.
- 🏙️ City life
- 🧭 Israeli setting
What Are the Themes of Drifting?
4 ideas the story keeps returning to, among them Identity, Memory & tradition and Art & aspiration.
-
01
Identity
Robbie’s sexual orientation and his status as a second-generation Holocaust survivor place him at odds with both family and society. The story follows his longing for love and acceptance within a culture that treats homosexuality as shameful. His immigrant experience deepens the sense of alienation, making him feel like a stranger in his own country. Through his private search for connection and his fragile artistic dreams, the film examines how identity is formed, negotiated, and defended in public spaces.
-
02
Memory & tradition
The father is a Holocaust survivor and Robbie’s grandmother clings to German memories, shaping their views on what a family should be. The film shows how trauma and memory constrain present choices and fuel judgments about normalcy. Generational pressures create an atmosphere of expectation and guilt that Robbie must navigate.
-
03
Art & aspiration
Robbie dreams of making a cheerful film that could win an Oscar, using cinema as a beacon of joy amid hardship. When investors refuse to materialize, the dream exposes the gap between desire and market reality. The struggle to fund his project becomes a catalyst for self-acceptance rather than a pure defeat.
-
04
Love & society
Robbie’s pursuit of love unfolds against social norms that press him toward conventional relationships. Han, the man he loves, ultimately marries a woman under pressure, illustrating how societal expectations shape personal happiness. The narrative traces Robbie’s resilience in the face of stigma and his path toward accepting his own identity.
What Kind of Film Is Drifting?
Melancholic in tone, with slow pacing and a straightforward story, going by the plot summary.
- Tone
- Melancholic
- Pacing
- Slow
- Story
- Straightforward
- Intensity
- Medium
- Ending
- Bittersweet
A slow, melancholic character study that follows a young man's quiet desperation and yearning for love and purpose within a society that feels like a cage, creating an atmospheric blend of loneliness and subdued frustration.
- melancholic
- lonely
- claustrophobic
- yearning
- reflective
- frustrated
- coming of age
- homosexuality
- artistic struggle
- family conflict
Content notes: homophobia, sexual content, frontal nudity.
Quiz
How well do you remember Drifting? Test yourself on the story.
