Silent Friend
A mighty gingko tree in a German university town bears silent witness to the lives of three characters over more than a century. In 1908, a bright botanist (Luna Wedler, Best Young Actress, Venice 2025) forges a challenging path as the first female student accepted by the male-dominated institution. In 1972, two classmates bond over a geranium in politically charged times. And in 2020, a lonely visiting neuroscientist (Leung Chiu-wai), stuck on campus, seeks meaning from the tree’s electromagnetic signals under the guidance of a French biologist (Seydoux). Oscar-nominated SFF regular Ildikó Enyedi returns in resplendent form with this perceptive exploration of humanity’s deep-rooted connection with nature.
Special Guests
Ildikó Enyedi is an award-winning and Oscar-nominated director. She has written and directed six features and several shorts, winning more than fifty international prizes. Her first feature film, MY 20TH CENTURY, won the Golden Camera for best debut in Cannes and was selected among the 10 best films of the year by The New York Times. Her recent work includes ON BODY AND SOUL (Berlinale, Golden Bear 2017 / Oscar Nomination) and THE STORY OF MY WIFE (Cannes Competition 2021). In addition to prizes awarded to her as a filmmaker, she has also received recognition as a scriptwriter, winning the Grand Prize of the Hartley-Merrill International Screenwriting Prize.
Among others, she was a member of the main jury at Berlin, Venice, Moscow, Tokyo and San Sebastian Film Festivals and was jury president of shorts in Cannes (2024).
Tickets
Sydney Film Festival acknowledges Australia’s First Nations People as the Traditional Owners and Custodians of the land, and pay respect to the Gadigal people of the Eora Nation, upon whose Country SFF is based.
We honour the storytelling and culture of Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander communities across Australia.
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