20/12/2023 - The German director spoke to us about his debut feature film, an astonishing movie about a teenage girl caught up in a post-apocalyptic cult, set against a backdrop of ecological crisis

(© Zuzana Panska)

Unveiled in Zurich, Jupiter [+see also:
film review
interview: Benjamin Pfohl
film profile] - a debut feature film which has actually turned out to be a wonderful surprise, going somewhat unnoticed by the rest of the industry – was also presented in the Playtime section of the 15th Les Arcs Film Festival where we met with its director Benjamin Pfohl.

Cineuropa: Where did you get the idea for Jupiter, with its sectarian community whose intentions only become clear over time?
Benjamin Pfohl: The real starting point was the moment in life when young people start to create their own worlds and call their parents’ viewpoints into question. I was also intrigued by the political movements and new cults in the world, which can suddenly drive “normal” people towards extremes and which are led by leaders with very strange ideas. I wanted to know how this could be possible, and it’s too easy to simply assume that they’re bad people: there had to be another explanation. I think we’re all too adamant that nothing like this could ever happen to us.

I wanted to dig in that direction. Lots of excellent filmmakers make naturalist movies, but I prefer to tackle socio-political subjects which I see as pressing through genre cinema. And the idea of another, forgotten world where everything would be idyllic, is something that all strange people promise us. They draw you into their groups, claiming that everything is easy with them and that any feelings of guilt will evaporate. And given that I really like science-fiction, I chose Jupiter.

How did you develop the screenplay, which is set in the present day but is interspersed with seamless explanatory flashbacks which gradually take us further back in time?
One of our fundamental ideas was to start in the middle of the story and to go off in two opposite directions. I wanted to create a contrast between the film’s final scenes where the characters seem to be members of a very strange sect, and sequences revolving around these same characters when they were totally normal people, but who simply experienced a moment of weakness or vulnerability in their lives which left them open to people who promised them hope or answers. And I didn’t want viewers to get a negative impression of this community immediately, I wanted them to make up their own minds. A really warm group leader, a story told from the viewpoint of a teenage girl… The entire story was conceived for the subject-matter to be seen from a naïve perspective. And young people are naturally attracted to desires to protect our planet from extinction and to create a free and egalitarian society.

What about the film’s pace?
Contrasts are at the heart of the entire film. On the one hand, there’s our world, a planet full of confusion and sometimes very noisy, with cloudy viewpoints on lots of subjects. On the other, there’s the very straightforward and serene world that this sect or cult offers. It was this contrast that dictated the film’s pace, from urban chaos to the tranquillity of the mountain region, but also the mise en scene, because we also needed to re-transcribe the chaos of puberty. So, my faithful director of photography Tim Kuhn and I decided to break with our usual habits and to not impose any particular rules. Instead, we accepted a blend of styles whilst attempting to capture the truth of every scene.

Jupiter had a very low production budget and, shockingly, it doesn’t have an international sales agent.
The film wouldn’t have seen the light of day were it not for the commitment of an entire team of real film lovers. We adapted to our very limited resources and tried to find creative solutions. A lack of money is sometimes an advantage in this sense. But I have some new ideas now and I hope to find partners to help me make them happen. I have faith in the future of European cinema, and I really hope to be part of it.

(Translated from French)