THE SILENCE is a research into Falk Richter's

biography and family history. A trip down memory lane takes him back to his parents' house,

which he left more than 30 years ago,

following his coming out. His father died before a reconciliation with his son can take place.

But the son finally wants to break the silence

that reigned in his family. He starts a dialogue with his mother which plunges him back into the hellish

days of his and her youth. What follows is also

a journey into the chasms of Western society from post-war to today, revealing a persistent history of

violence that makes a more humane future impossible.