Andreas Herzog directs the six-part SWR series by Kristin Derfler, starring Julia Jentsch and Mai Duong Kieu.
Munich/Baden-Baden, August 5, 2026 – A shocking murder in the present, a suppressed crime from the past, and a place seemingly untouched by time: in the new crime series KELTENBURG (working title), a mysterious death leads two detectives into an isolated community in Germany’s Black Forest.
The concept for the six-part SWR series was developed by writer Kristin Derfler, who also wrote all six screenplays and serves as Creative Producer. The series is directed by Andreas Herzog. Julia Jentsch and Mai Duong Kieu play the two investigators. Alongside them, the cast includes Carlo Krammling, Lucas Gregorowicz, Hannah Schiller, Karoline Eichhorn, Florian Stetter, Holger Daemgen, Gloria Odosi, Sascha Geršak, and Naomi Krauss, all appearing before the camera of cinematographer Claire Jahn.
KELTENBURG is produced by AMALIA FILM in co-production with STUDIO ALBA PRODUCTIONS and SWR for ARD, with funding from MFG Baden-Württemberg and the German Motion Picture Fund. The series is produced by Jean-Young Kwak, with Claudia Thieme serving as executive producer. Editorial responsibility lies with Katharina Dufner and Manfred Hattendorf. Filming will continue until early October in the Black Forest, Alsace, and Middle Franconia.
SynopsisA secluded lake in the Black Forest on a radiant summer day. Two young men are enjoying the water when a meticulously crafted hunting arrow whistles through the sunlight and fatally strikes one of them, Jakob. His friend Nolan desperately tries to save him but is struck himself and escapes with injuries. Hidden in the undergrowth, a young woman remains behind, distressed and possibly the only witness.
The investigation leads detectives Tessa Raukamp and Chau Pham to the nearby Keltenburg. There, the charismatic Arto offers a temporary alternative way of life that promises authenticity, a close connection to nature, and freedom. Nolan and Jakob were also connected to this place. Yet behind its carefully staged façade lie dependencies, conflicts of loyalty, and long-buried secrets.
KELTENBURG combines a multi-layered crime narrative with a magically poetic visual world. The forest, the river, and the fragmented memories of the young Maelle gradually reveal the puzzle of a repressed past. As Tessa and Chau delve deeper into the intertwined histories of several families, it becomes increasingly clear that the murder at the forest lake is linked to a crime that occurred twenty years earlier but was never recognized as such.
Creative TeamAdditional cast members include Anne Eigner, Antonia Jauss, Serder Altan, Julius Henri Busch, Nuriye Jendroßek, and many others.
Editing: Gerald Savin and Marco Pav D’Auria, Production Design: Söhnke Noé and Anna Lena Freiling, Costume Design: Juliane Maier, Music: Alex Komlew, Casting: Stephanie Maile
Andreas Herzog directs the six-part SWR series by Kristin Derfler, starring Julia Jentsch and Mai Duong Kieu.
Munich/Baden-Baden, August 5, 2026 – A shocking murder in the present, a suppressed crime from the past, and a place seemingly untouched by time: in the new crime series KELTENBURG (working title), a mysterious death leads two detectives into an isolated community in Germany’s Black Forest.
The concept for the six-part SWR series was developed by writer Kristin Derfler, who also wrote all six screenplays and serves as Creative Producer. The series is directed by Andreas Herzog. Julia Jentsch and Mai Duong Kieu play the two investigators. Alongside them, the cast includes Carlo Krammling, Lucas Gregorowicz, Hannah Schiller, Karoline Eichhorn, Florian Stetter, Holger Daemgen, Gloria Odosi, Sascha Geršak, and Naomi Krauss, all appearing before the camera of cinematographer Claire Jahn.
KELTENBURG is produced by AMALIA FILM in co-production with STUDIO ALBA PRODUCTIONS and SWR for ARD, with funding from MFG Baden-Württemberg and the German Motion Picture Fund. The series is produced by Jean-Young Kwak, with Claudia Thieme serving as executive producer. Editorial responsibility lies with Katharina Dufner and Manfred Hattendorf. Filming will continue until early October in the Black Forest, Alsace, and Middle Franconia.
SynopsisA secluded lake in the Black Forest on a radiant summer day. Two young men are enjoying the water when a meticulously crafted hunting arrow whistles through the sunlight and fatally strikes one of them, Jakob. His friend Nolan desperately tries to save him but is struck himself and escapes with injuries. Hidden in the undergrowth, a young woman remains behind, distressed and possibly the only witness.
The investigation leads detectives Tessa Raukamp and Chau Pham to the nearby Keltenburg. There, the charismatic Arto offers a temporary alternative way of life that promises authenticity, a close connection to nature, and freedom. Nolan and Jakob were also connected to this place. Yet behind its carefully staged façade lie dependencies, conflicts of loyalty, and long-buried secrets.
KELTENBURG combines a multi-layered crime narrative with a magically poetic visual world. The forest, the river, and the fragmented memories of the young Maelle gradually reveal the puzzle of a repressed past. As Tessa and Chau delve deeper into the intertwined histories of several families, it becomes increasingly clear that the murder at the forest lake is linked to a crime that occurred twenty years earlier but was never recognized as such.
Creative TeamAdditional cast members include Anne Eigner, Antonia Jauss, Serder Altan, Julius Henri Busch, Nuriye Jendroßek, and many others.
Editing: Gerald Savin and Marco Pav D’Auria, Production Design: Söhnke Noé and Anna Lena Freiling, Costume Design: Juliane Maier, Music: Alex Komlew, Casting: Stephanie Maile