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Home > Marketplace > ZDF Studios > The Zweiflers

Director: Anja Marquardt, Clara Zöe My-Linh von Arnim

Producer: Turbokultur

Writer: David Hadda, Dr. Sarah Hadda, Juri Sternburg

Cast: Aaron Altaras, Saffron Coomber, Sunnyi Melles, Ute Lemper, Mark Ivanir, Mike Burstyn, Eleanor Reissa, Deleila Piasko, Leo Altaras, Anna Lena Klenke, Leonille Wittgenstein, Martin Wuttke a.o.

Genres: Comedy, Drama


6 x 45’

Family patriarch and Holocaust survivor Symcha Zweifler wants to sell his delicatessen empire when suddenly he is confronted with his past in Frankfurt's red light district just after WWII—an acid test for the whole family as long-suppressed conflicts resurface. Who, if not Symchas’s grandson Samuel, should carry on his grandfather's life's work? But Samuel’s British Caribbean girlfriend, Saba, has other plans. Things get worse when Samuel and Saba are expecting a son. Samuel's sister Dana, who has found her anchor in religion and has traveled all the way from Israel to celebrate the circumcision of the newborn in Frankfurt, is confronted with old conflicts and repressed secrets in her hometown. She does everything in her power to take over her grandfather's business. The youngest sibling, Leon, is clearly the loser in the return of his two older siblings. When he invites the family to his first exhibition, in which he shows his provocative family portraits, a scandal ensues. Mimi, the mother of the three, always walks a fine line between caring and manipulation. How far will she go to bring her children closer to her again? Her husband, Jackie, a psychiatrist, is in the middle of a belated midlife crisis, including an affair with his patient. He is tired of always being the family punching bag. The grandparents, Symcha and Lilka Zweifler, are the undisputed rulers of the family. But their strength and lifespan are slowly beginning to fade. A tragic-comic search for the meaning of life begins, culminating in decisions that will change the lives of everyone involved.

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