Johannes Bergmann is a successful actor in his mid-30s. Used to being praised for his acting skills, he encounters new, unexpected problems during rehearsals for the role of Jean in a performance of August Strindberg’s Miss Julie. The Swedish director accuses him of being a superficial phony, and demands that Johannes uses more of his own emotions and experiences in his interpretation of Jan.

At the same time Johannes reconnects with a woman he has had a brief affair with – Kristin, who is a nurse, married and mother of a child. Too late, Johannes discovers that both art and life has its price, and that it might be impossible to succeed in both fields.