TONI ERDMANN

Winfried doesn’t see much of his working daughter Ines. The suddenly student-less music teacher decides to surprise her with a visit after the death of his old dog. It’s an awkward move because serious career woman Ines is working on an important project as a corporate strategist in Bucharest. The geographical change doesn’t help the two to see eye to eye any better. Practical joker Winfried loves to annoy his daughter with corny pranks. What’s worse are his little jabs at her routine lifestyle of long meetings, hotel bars and performance reports. Father and daughter reach an impasse, and Winfried agrees to return home to Germany. Enter dazzling “Toni Erdmann”: Winfried’s smooth-talking alter ego. Disguised in a tacky suit, weird wig and even weirder fake teeth, Toni barges into Ines’ professional life, claiming to be her CEO’s life coach. Wilder and bolder than Winfried, Toni doesn’t hold back, and Ines meets the challenge. The harder they push, the closer they become. In all the madness, Ines begins to understand that her eccentric father might deserve some place in her life after all.

Director

MAREN ADE studied at the University of Television & Film (HFF/M) in Munich. Together with Janine Jackowski, she founded the production company Komplizen Film in 2000. Also active as a producer, her award-winning films as a director include: the shorts EBENE 9 (2000) and VEGAS (2001), and the features THE FOREST FOR THE TREES (DER WALD VOR LAUTER BÄUMEN, 2003), EVERYONE ELSE (ALLE ANDEREN, 2009), and TONI ERDMANN (2016).

Maren Ade (photo © Iris Janke) photos © Komplizen Film