28/02/2025 - The Spanish filmmaker explains why she was fascinated by Isaac Rosa's novel, discusses the broken structure of her film and reflects on the enjoyable editing phase

The Story of Us [+see also:
film review
trailer
interview: Helena Taberna
film profile], the new film by Helena Taberna, is an exploration of love and heartbreak based on Isaac Rosa’s novel Feliz final. Starring María Vázquez and Pablo Molinero, it premieres in Spain on 28 February, distributed by Vértigo Films.

Cineuropa: What attracted you to the original book that made you decide to adapt it for the cinema?
Helena Taberna: I’ve always been drawn to the theme of love between couples as a subject for film. When I read this novel, I was deeply moved, and I was captivated by how it was told through the two voices of the couple, going back and forth.  I also recognised the power of the story and the effect of the reader identifying with what is being told (and how it is being told). I saw some very interesting elements that I could use, which weren’t present in other love-hate films, such as the years of transition from initial love to the painful questions that many couples ask themselves when they feel like strangers after years of living together.

Why didn't you keep the original title of the book?
The Story of Us is not a faithful adaptation; I have taken it to my own territory, and I wanted to make the most of the language of cinema, where silences can be more powerful than an entire chapter of words. I’ve also been changing the script because I’ve followed a path that moves away from the structure used in the book, incorporating personal and vicarious experiences. The story of the film is more intimate, more aligned with the story I’m telling.

Did the author participate at any point in the production process?
No. Isaac didn't work on the script or anything else, but he was very close to me throughout the whole process. Unlike in my other films, where I kept my distance from the people involved in the story to avoid interference, in the case of Rosa, there was such a great sense of complicity and mutual respect from the start that I wanted him to be close by.  He is a generous man with so much talent that he enhanced my creative process, believing in me over more substantial offers.

How would you describe the jumpy structure of the narrative in your film?
Given that the reverse-chronological narrative, which works so well in the novel, is not adaptable to the language of film, I started looking for a structure that would allow the audience to hold an active gaze. I thought it would be most effective to use the broken, alternating structure of how memory works in recollection, which, at the same time, allowed me to enable the viewer to identify more actively with what is happening on the screen.

Was the editing perhaps the most meticulous task in the film?
The entire film has been meticulously crafted because it was very important to pay attention to the details, the objects, the silences...  The most beautiful tools in the language of cinema are always those of subtlety, and we took that into account. I also enjoyed filling and emptying the layers of the story. But you're right that the most enjoyable phase was the editing, because I had the time and freedom to try things out, and I took risks, but always following a process that worked.

Apart from Journey to Italy, what other nods to film can be found in your feature film?
Consciously, only Roberto Rossellini's film. But I love cinema and my interests are rooted there... What I haven't done is revisit the films on the subject that I like, because I wanted to use only “the unthought known”.

How do children, parents and friends influence romantic relationships?
I hope that when you watch the film, you will discover the answer. It is one of the many mirrors or layers of the film. And of course, in the day-to-day life of couples, children, friends and parents have an influence, as do the precariousness or the ups and downs of desire or the myth of romantic love.  I want my film to show all these influences as part of the good and bad of love in cohabitation. In cinema, I always like to raise questions and my desire with The Story of Us is that there should first be an identification of the audience with what is happening on the screen, and then their reflections are activated. I'm not so interested in the answers.

(Translated from Spanish)