THE PATRIARCH (2026)

Documentary, 55 min

PATRIARKEN - original title

Director Andrea Storm Henriksen

Producer Julie Friis Walenciak 

Associate producer Claes Hedlund

Executive producers Peter Hyldahl, Per Damgaard Hansen

Photography Andrea Storm Henriksen

Editor Rasmus Gitz-Johansen

Sound designer Sune Kaarsberg

Composer Kristian Eidnes Andersen

Produced by Paloma Productions

Supported by The Danish Film Institute 

Danish film producer Peter Aalbæk is a self-proclaimed patriarch. Now his daughters are sending him to therapy—but can he really change? A loving, funny, and merciless portrait of a threatened species.

The world has become woke, norms have shifted, and patriarchy is slowly falling apart. Danish producer Peter Aalbæk is an old-fashioned man in a modern world—a ronkedor who refuses to go along with the wokeism and identity politics of the times. The high spirits of his heyday have given way to low blood sugar, diabetes, and diet pills, but his daily glass of red wine is non-negotiable.

Now his daughters Sigrid and Hedvig have sent their father to therapy. They want presence, attention, and responsibility. Peter shows up with irony, restlessness, and a self-declaration as “a right-wing, old-fashioned, dick-fascist pig.” Feelings are difficult, listening to them even more so. The question is whether therapy can teach Peter new tricks – or whether he is forever relegated to the role of incorrigible patriarch.