The film follows 15-year-old Leo as she journeys to the northern coast of Italy to meet her estranged biological father for the first time.

[2] The film is produced by Michael Weber, Cécile Tollu-Polonowski and Viola Fügen, under banners of Match Factory Productions GmbH, Cologne, and Wildside, Rome.

In late March filming was done in Dessau-Roßlau, Saxony-Anhalt Germany, where, among other things, the train station served as a backdrop.

[5][6] The film was also shot in Cesena, in the Po Delta Park, between Ravenna, Marina Romea, Casalborsetti and Cervia in the province of Ravenna, Comacchio and Argenta, Emilia–Romagna in the province of Ferrara and Munich.

[3] Paternal Leave had its World premiere on 15 February 2025, as part of the 75th Berlin International Film Festival, in Generation 14plus.