Amalia is on the verge of burnout. Her family life—with her husband, Karim; her 4-year-old daughter, Lili; and her 17-year-old stepdaughter, Nora—is nothing but rushing around, screaming, and doors slamming. At work, they talk about agility, flexibility, and adaptation, but her workload is slipping away from her. As she drives through the countryside, she sees diseased wheat fields and polluted rivers. She can't even listen to the radio without some new story about deadly attacks and a dying climate. Amalia struggles, tries, fails... and eventually, she cracks.

一个早晨，一通意外来电打破了一位巴塞罗那作家的日常生活。在这通奇特来电中，一个女性嗓音邀请作家前往德国城市卡塞尔参加世界先锋艺术盛会：卡塞尔文献展。根据策展方要求，作家需化身“驻店作家”待在卡塞尔城郊一家中餐馆内，每日与人聊天交流，并在众人眼皮底下写作。随着时间的流逝，卡塞尔在作家心中越来越像一座奇景遍地的庄园，而他自己则犹如一个无所事事的闲人、一个不知疲倦的访客，在各色先锋艺术展品间流连忘返。