Antoine Monot
Character actor, director and entrepreneur — for over three decades one of the most versatile figures in German-language cinema and television.
Origins & Background
Antoine Monot was born on 22 June 1975 in Rheinbach, North Rhine-Westphalia. His father Jean-François Monot is a composer and conductor; his mother Gisela Monot an actress. Growing up in a household immersed in music, theatre and film, he developed an early instinct for language, character and scene.
After attending a Waldorf school he moved to Switzerland to study acting and directing at the renowned Schauspielakademie Zurich (now Zurich University of the Arts, ZHdK), where he trained from 1990 to 1993. Switzerland became his second home — he holds both German and Swiss citizenship and continues to work across the DACH region.
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Stage Years in Switzerland
After graduating, Antoine Monot gained extensive stage experience at major Swiss theatres — the Schauspielhaus Zurich, the Theater am Neumarkt and the Theater Basel. These years gave him the foundation for his later work as a character actor: the ability to develop complex figures with depth and precision.
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Co-founder, Creative Artists Management AG
In 1998 he co-founded Creative Artists Management AG (CAM), a talent agency based in Switzerland. He served on the board until 2002 — his first experience at the intersection of art and entrepreneurship.
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Breakthrough: Absolute Giganten
The film that changed everything: in Sebastian Schipper's landmark debut Absolute Giganten (1999, X Filme Creative Pool), Antoine Monot played the lead role of Walter — a young man on the night when friendship, departure and new beginnings collide. The film is considered a milestone of German auteur cinema. International recognition followed two years later: Best Actor at the International Film Festival Sochi 2001.
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Key Cinema Roles
The early 2000s brought a series of formative productions. In Oliver Hirschbiegel's psychological thriller Das Experiment (2001) he had a major supporting role — a film that caused a worldwide stir and was later remade in Hollywood. With Lammbock (2001) and Der Wixxer (2004) he demonstrated his talent for comedic character work. The Bavarian sports comedy Schwere Jungs (2006, Marcus H. Rosenmuller) followed with a lead role.
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Co-founder, Zurich Film Festival
In 2005 Antoine Monot co-founded the Zurich Film Festival (ZFF) — today one of the most significant film festivals in the German-speaking world. As artistic and programme director he helped shape the festival until 2009.
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Initiator, German Acting Prize
There was no award in Germany dedicated exclusively to actors. Antoine Monot had the idea in 2010 — and made it happen. In 2012 the first Deutscher Schauspielpreis (German Acting Prize) was awarded, and it has been presented annually ever since by the German Actors Association (BFFS), of which he was deputy chairman until the end of 2022.
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National Fame: Saturn “Tech-Nick”
From 2013 to 2017 Antoine Monot played the advertising character “Tech-Nick” for the German electronics chain Saturn — one of the most prominent ad campaigns in Germany during that period. The character made him recognisable to millions.
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Ein Fall fuer zwei & Swiss Television Film Prize
In 2014 Antoine Monot joined the long-running ZDF legal series Ein Fall fuer zwei as lawyer Benjamin “Benni” Hornberg — a recurring role he still plays today. The same year he appeared in the cyber-thriller Who Am I (dir. Baran bo Odar), which became an international Netflix hit. In 2016 he received the Swiss Television Film Prize at the 51. Solothurner Filmtage for his role in Tatort: Ihr werdet gerichtet.
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Title Role: Behringer und die Toten
Since 2024 Antoine Monot leads the RTL crime series Behringer und die Toten — Ein Bamberg-Krimi as Detective Chief Inspector Konrad Behringer, investigating in the UNESCO World Heritage city of Bamberg. Produced by Redseven Entertainment.
Awards & Nominations
- ★Best Actor — International Film Festival Sochi 2001 (for Absolute Giganten)
- ★Swiss Television Film Prize 2016 — 51. Solothurner Filmtage (for Tatort: Ihr werdet gerichtet)
- ○Nomination German Comedy Award 2017 — Best Sketch Show (for Knallerkerle)
- ○German Film Award Longlist — Best Leading Actor (for Die blaue Grenze)