Silent Friend - Love & Anarchy 17-27.9.2026

Ildikó Enyedi's latest film Silent Friend follows three lonely people across three different eras - united through a ginkgo tree (Gingko biloba) in a German university's botanical garden.

In 2020, neurologist Tony Leung Chiu-wai finds himself stranded on an empty campus as the coronavirus pandemic shuts down the world. In 1908, the university's first female student searches for her place in a hostile environment. In the 1970s, a withdrawn young man falls in love amid a vibrant student movement. Each discovers connection with people only after finding connection with plants.

Enyedi is known for her restrained magical realism and has been significantly honoured at European film festivals - including the Golden Bear for the film Touch (R&A 2017). The film alternates between sensually charged close-ups of flower organs and cell movement with frames full of emptiness.

Director: Ildikó Enyedi. Cast: Tony Leung Chiu-wai, Léa Seydoux, Luna Wedler. Country: Germany, Hungary, France, China. Languages: English, German, Cantonese. Subtitles: English. Age rating: S. Duration: 147 min. Original title: Stille Freundin (2025).