"I love editing. I think I like it more than any other phase of filmmaking. If I wanted to be frivolous, I might say that everything that precedes editing is merely a way of producing film to edit." - Stanley Kubrick
Filmography (selection)
2025 Tatort - Ein Guter Tag directed by Hans Steinbichler
starring Wotan Wilke Möhring, Denis Moschitto, Gaite Jansen and many more
2024 Die Diplomatin - Tod einer Nonne directed by Roland Suso Richter
starring Natalia Wörner, Alexander Beyer, Susanne Wuest, Maria Matschke, Samantha Hanses
2024 Tatort - Vier Leben directed by Mark Monheim
starring Corinna Harfouch, Mark Waschke, Pegah Ferydoni
2023 Rapunzel und die Rückkehr der Falken directed by Christoph Helmer
starring Anna-Lena Schwing, Luke Matt Röntgen, Tom Böttcher, Christina Große und Andrea Sawatzki
2022 Munich Games directed by Philipp Kadelbach (co-editor episodes 5 and 6)
starring Seyneb Saleh, Yousef 'Joe' Sweid, Doval'e Glickman, Sebastian Rudolph, Roger Azar, Anton Spieker and many more
2021 Das Boot (season 3) - episodes 1 to 3 , directed by Hans Steinbichler
starring Tom Wlaschiha, Franz Dinda, Ray Stevenson, Jo Hartley, Joana Ribeiro, Fritzi Haberlandt, Franz Hartwig
2020 Der Zürich Krimi - Borchert und der eisige Tod directed by Roland Suso Richter
starring Lena Stolze und Christian Kohlund
2020 Die Diplomatin - Tödliches Alibi directed by Roland Suso Richter
starring Natalia Wörner, Alexander Beyer, Andrea Osvárt and Stipe Erceg
2019 Das Boot (season 2) - episodes 6 and 8, directed by Rick Ostermann
starring Tom Wlaschiha, Fleur Geffrier, Rick Oron, Clemens Schick, Thierry Frémont, Vincent Kartheiser, Michael McElhatton, Ulrich Matthes
2018 Die Diplomatin - Böses Spiel directed by Roland Suso Richter
starring Natalia Wörner, Alexander Beyer, Maren Kroymann, Johannes Meister, Jeanne Tremsal and Jean-Yves Berteloot
2018 Tatort - Tiere der Großstadt directed by Roland Suso Richter
starring Meret Becker and Mark Waschke
2017 Die Diplomatin - Jagd durch Prag directed by Roland Suso Richter
starring Natalia Wörner, Jannik Schümann, Angus McGruther and Maren Kroymann
2016 Un profil pour deux written and directed by Stéphane Robelin
starring Pierre Richard, Fanny Valette and Yaniss Lespert
2016 Frat Pack directed by Michael Philip
starring Beverly D'Angelo, Kevin P. Farley, Robert Knepper, Danny Trejo ,Hana Mae Lee, J. Adam Brown, Brendan Michael Coughlin, Harvey Guillén, Richard Alan Reid, Rachel Risen, Elizabeth De Razzo
2015 Das Versprechen written and directed by Marcus Vetter and Karin Steinberger (co-editor)
2015 Battle Drone written and directed by Mitch Gould
starring Louis Mandylor, Dominique Swain and Michael Paré
2013 Die Pilgerin directed by Philipp Kadelbach
starring Josephine Preuß, Volker Bruch, Stipe Erceg, Jacob Matschenz
2011 Errors of the human body written and directed by Eron Sheean
starring Michael Eklund and Karoline Herfurth
2010 Et si on vivait tous ensemble? written and directed by Stéphane Robelin
starring Jane Fonda, Géraldine Chaplin, Pierre Richard, Guy Bedos, Claude Rich and Daniel Brühl
2007 Night Train written and directed by Brian King
starring Danny Glover, Steve Zahn, Leelee Sobieski and Matthias Schweighöfer
2005 La Nature by Artavazd Pelechian
montage preparations@ZKM, Karlsruhe
2003 Wish you were here directed by Darryn Welch
starring Sam Page and Natassia Malthe
2002 Russian Ark written and directed by Aleksandr Sokurov
starring Sergey Dreyden
CV
Patrick Wilfert, born and raised in Mainz, Germany, is a trilingual (German, French, English) film editor with over two decades of experience shaping visual narratives across genres and formats. Since 2002, he has worked as a freelance editor, leaving his mark on commercials, music videos, documentaries, and international feature films. In 2018, he joined the European Film Academy.
Education & early career
Patrick studied audiovisual arts in France, earning a master’s degree with honors (1997) from universities in Paris and Marseille. His early fascination with dramatic storytelling led him to editing, which became the cornerstone of his career. Repeatedly employed in his semester breaks, he got valuable insight as editorial office assistant at French-German television ZDF/arte (1994-98, departments "Theater und Musik/arte" and "Kleines Fernsehspiel/ZDF"). Mainly appointed as reader, his evaluations of program and coproduction submissions were highly appreciated.
In 1999, after completing an intensive traineeship in digital postproduction, he joined DoRo, Berlin’s preeminent music video production company. There, he mastered Avid editing and VFX, laying the technical foundation for his future work.
Music Videos & Commercials
Since 2002, Patrick has edited hundreds of music videos for iconic artists, including: A-ha, Anastacia, Bloodhound Gang, Beatsteaks, Deep Purple, Die Toten Hosen, Kim Wilde, Kreator, Mando Diao, Motörhead, Paul van Dyk, Rammstein, Scorpions, Tarja Turunen, The Rasmus, Tokio Hotel and many more. His collaborations with directors Jörn Heitmann, Hinrich Pflug, and Marcus Sternberg have yielded numerous award-winning and nominated projects, recognized at the MTV Europe Music Awards, Art Directors Club Germany, Echo, and Comet.
Feature Films & Documentaries
Patrick’s editorial work extends to internationally acclaimed feature films and documentaries, including:
- Russian Ark (2002) – Aleksandr Sokurov’s 95-minute one-take masterpiece (in competition in Cannes), using the then novelty of HD technology. Patrick dynamically reframed and retimed the entire sequence, collaborating closely with Sokurov - a deeply rewarding artistic and personal experience.
- La Nature (2005/06) – A rare opportunity to assist Artavazd Pelechian, the legendary Armenian filmmaker and montage theorist. Following the artists very own way of preparing his work on audiovisual poems, Patrick sorted and classified many hours of footage for his first film in twenty-seven years. Commissioned by ZKM Karlsruhe and Fondation Cartier, Paris.
- Et Si On Vivait Tous Ensemble? (2011) – Stéphane Robelin’s heartwarming comedy starring Jane Fonda, Géraldine Chaplin, Pierre Richard, Guy Bedos, Claude Rich und Daniel Brühl, which premiered as the closing film at the Locarno Film Festival, played at festivals around the globe and enjoyed a successful worldwide release.
- Errors of the Human Body (2012) – Eron Sheean’s critically acclaimed thriller-drama, selected and awared at various international Festivals (Rotterdam, Rio, Melbourne and Miami IFF, Frightfest London, Fantasia Festival Montreal, Fantastic Fest Austin, Trieste Science and Fiction Festival), an international indie production co-starring Karoline Herfurth, for which Michael Eklund won the canadian 2013 Leo Award for Best Lead Performance.
- The Promise (2016) – Marcus Vetter’s award-winning documentary, which premiered at Filmfest München and screened at festivals and in theatres globally.
- Un profil pour deux / Monsieur Pierre geht online (2017) – A Franco-German co-production starring Pierre Richard. This charming Gallic comedy (German title: Monsieur Pierre geht online) premiered at the Festival d'Alpe-d'Huez 2017 followed by a worldwide release.
Television & Series
Patrick continues to work mainly for primetime television movies and high-profile series, including:
- Die Diplomatin (ARD) – Multiple 90min-episodes of this political drama series, directed by Roland Suso Richter
- Die Pilgerin (ZDF) - a 180 minutes production for ZDF directed by Philipp Kadelbach
- Tatort (ARD)– The iconic German crime series, including the episode "Tiere der Großstadt", “Vier Leben“ or “Ein guter Tag“
- Munich Games (Sky) – A high-stakes thriller series directed by Philipp Kadelbach
- Rapunzel (ZDF) – A fairy tale adaptation directed by Christoph Heimer
- Das Boot (Sky/Bavaria Film) – The epic WWII drama series, directed by Rick Ostermann (season2 ) and Hans Steinbichler (season 3)
Editing’s transformative power is the base of all of Patrick's works. From music video freestyle and avant-garde experiments to mainstream thriller and nuanced character studies, his versatile portfolio mirrors a career shaped by intellectual openness and a lifelong passion for the alchemy of editing.
Patrick's ability to collaborate closely with very different directors has made him a widely experienced editor in both TV prime time fiction and international cinema. Whether refining a 90-minute one-take marvel, crafting a historical war drama or shaping a fairy tale for young audience, his work always aims at enhancing narrative depth, character psychology and emotional impact. Great editing doesn’t just refine a story, it redefines it.