Silent Friend

Set in a botanical garden within a medieval German university town, Silent Friend centres on a majestic Ginkgo biloba tree — which can famously live up to 1,000 years — that silently observes humans over the centuries.

In 1908, steadfast Grete (Luna Wedler) is seeking admission to the botany department of a prestigious institution. Though whip-smart, her sex is a barrier to entry into the male-dominated field and to society at large.

In 1972, at the same institution, Gundula (Marlene Burow) is conducting an experiment on what plants can sense via a single geranium. She elicits the help of her anti-social classmate Hannes (Enzo Brumm), with whom there is unspoken sexual tension. Meanwhile, in 2020, Professor Tony Wong (Tony Leung Chiu-Wai), a brilliant neurologist working at the same institution, suspects a deep relationship between what is seen and unseen.

Determined to make a connection, he seeks the supervision of world-renowned botanist Dr. Alice Sauvage (Léa Seydoux) to test his radical theory. Over the span of ages, the incredible link between these humans goes unnoticed except by the tree, to which they are all spiritually connected.

Shot by Gergely Pálos — who filmed the 1908 period in 35mm, the 1972 period in 16mm, and 2020 digitally — edited by Károly Szalai, and with a remarkable original score by Gábor Keresztes and Kristóf Kelemen, Silent Friend is Festival favourite Ildikó Enyedi’s (My Twentieth Century, TIFF ’89, On Body and Soul, TIFF ’17) tender, enchanting, and wholly engrossing exploration of the natural world — including we poor humans, who witness only a sliver of its history.

DOROTA LECH