In search of freedom and the American Dream, 16-year-old German exchange student Franny sets out to the USA in 2001. But instead of New York or California, she ends up in the emptiness of a small town in New Mexico. In the wake of 9/11, Franny drifts through her exchange life in a city left behind and forgotten by America. In the endless desert, Franny, the 'alien', meets military host families, bored teens, strange characters of all kinds, and a soulmate – the melancholic Elliott, who despite h...