Die Pfefferkörner

Long-running children’s and youth series from the NDR/ARD universe — part of German television childhood since 1999.

Die Pfefferkörner tells the story of successive generations of young detectives in Hamburg — children and teenagers who, between school, friendship and growing up, keep ending up in adventures big and small. Over the years the show has become a fixed companion of many viewers’ own childhoods; each new generation brings its own dynamic, language and time.

Max Tsui took over the camera for Generations 11 and 12 of the series (seasons 17 to 19). Both blocks were shot during a very particular time — in the middle of the pandemic years. Between hygiene protocols, empty streets and the effort to keep up some sense of normality for a young ensemble, a visual language emerged that aimed to make the series a little more cinematic, more atmospheric and more emotionally direct, without losing its warm tone.

The stories move between classical detective format and coming-of-age narrative: friendship, loyalty, early responsibility and the search for one’s place in the world — told against the urban backdrop of Hamburg, which over the years has itself become a fixed character of the show.

Beyond the camera work, Max Tsui also shaped the series on a design level: across several episodes, he hid numerous little Easter eggs inside the image world, and was significantly involved in the visual introduction of the new Pfefferkörner headquarters — a location that quickly became a new emotional centre of the show for many young viewers.

Generation 11 (seasons 17–18): episodes 209–221, shot 2 March to 5 August 2020. Generation 12 (seasons 18–19): episodes 224–228 plus 230 and 232, shot 17 June to 23 October 2021.

Directors of the episodes pictured here: Daniel Drechsel-Grau and Philipp Scholz. Production: LETTERBOX FILMPRODUKTION GmbH for ARD/NDR.