Brothers Helmut and Wolfgang Kaminski live on opposite sides of the still porous Iron Curtain: Helmut works as a reporter for radio in the American sector, Wolfgang as an SED functionary for the construction of socialism. His father Otto was a brigade leader at the large construction site in Stalinallee, where the demonstrations began on June 16. On June 17, 1953, the East Berlin workers formed an uprising.
| Actor | Role |
|---|---|
 Sebastian KochHelmut Kaminski | Helmut Kaminski |
 Hans-Werner MeyerWolfgang Kaminski | Wolfgang Kaminski |
 Lisa MartinekAngelika | Angelika |
 Matthias HabichOtto Kaminski | Otto Kaminski |
 Cornelia SchmausIrene Kaminski | Irene Kaminski |
 Christoph WaltzMichael Berg | Michael Berg |
 André HennickeBeck | Beck |
 Udo SchenkErich Draeger | Erich Draeger |
 Dieter MontagWerner Knipka | Werner Knipka |
 Bernd StegemannGrabowsky | Grabowsky |
 Sven WalserDirk Niemann | Dirk Niemann |
| TThomas WehlingLehmann | Lehmann |
 Peter BenedictMeinert | Meinert |
| FFrank BrücknerYoung Worker | Young Worker |
 Manfred LehmannFred Klein (uncredited) | Fred Klein (uncredited) |
| PPeter RühringRüdiger Krohn (uncredited) | Rüdiger Krohn (uncredited) |
 Hanns ZischlerWiedemeyer (uncredited) | Wiedemeyer (uncredited) |