VATER is a feature-length documentary film about my Vater (German : father), who was absent from my life since my parents divorced when I was 3 years old. Ever since, he was like a phantom; I knew of and about him, but he was never there, and there was no real interaction between us, apart from a handful of long-distance calls.
He lived a multiplicity of lives since the breakup with my mom, and has now agreed to share his wild stories with me. While my mother lovingly and self-sacrificingly raised me in Berlin, my father lived the life of a nomad, a freak, an outcast - gathering experiences and stories that I knew nothing about. Until now.
During all these years, my father embarked on an identity quest, in an attempt to answer the grand questions of his existence, revolving around belonging, relationships, masculinity, family, money, spirituality and rebellion.
All this leads to the ultimate question: Who is he - and which part of myself will I find in him?