Alle meine Väter

Summary

All my fathers

Filmmaker Jan Raiber sets off on a search for his own identity. He wants to
meet his biological father – an encounter that is long overdue. His quest is
one upon which, sooner or later, many a child from a patchwork family may
find themselves embarking. But why is this topic so often hushed up?
Jan announces his intentions to his siblings, his parents and his grandparents.

He also tells them of his plan to record his search on film. The camera
is his rock; it gives him the courage not to eschew painful truths – as so
often before. But his brother is shocked to discover that he is only his halfbrother;
his grandparents are not sure whether his father will be pleased to
see him, and his mother refuses to be filmed. Jan stands by the fence outside
the house of the man who made him, but daren’t go in. Old nightmares
and long-buried memories are rekindled.

A letter from his mother arrives. She tries to explain things but ends up
making things more confusing than ever. In order to understand the past,
Jan first has to understand what life was like for his mother when she was
young: her relationship to her parents, the all-pervasive atmosphere of control
and influence, the problems of a young couple in the GDR, and the
appearance of a second husband – Jan’s de facto father.

And so, what now? He still hasn’t met his biological father. What should be
his next step? Who can he damage? Isn’t it better to leave things as they
are? Jan must fight his way through a quagmire of well-meaning advice
and embargos in order to get to the bottom of it all. But then his mother
decides to support him; for the sake of her son she makes a bid to overcome
her fear and face up to her long-repressed past.

Source: 60. Internationale Filmfestspiele Berlin (Catalogue)