We are delighted to present the award-winning director Chiara Fleischhacker in today’s Role Model Interview.
Dear Ms. Fleischhacker, thank you very much for your time! We are delighted to introduce you to our readers and to be able to give them an exciting insight into your debut film VENA.
Ms. Fleischhacker, you grew up in an artistic family and developed a deep interest in storytelling and the art of film at an early age. Would you like to give the readers a little snapshot from your biography?
I don’t actually come from an artistic family, on the contrary. My parents both experienced their traumas in the GDR and were unable to realize their professional dreams. So I grew up in a time of opportunity, in which I finally found my way to studying directing in Ludwigsburg and Paris after various detours – via an elite sports school and a psychology degree in Freiburg.
VENA is your debut graduation film at the Filmakademie Baden-Württemberg. How did the idea for the film come about?
While editing a documentary on the subject of punishment, I was pregnant with my own daughter and wondered whether pregnant women have to be imprisoned at all and, if so, under what conditions. That was the key question that led me to a complex piece of research.
We are delighted that we have already been able to take a look at the film, and the first thing that struck us was the depth of the characters. We were particularly impressed by the protagonists Jenny (Emma Nova) and Marla (Friederike Becht). How did you ensure that the characters in the film were portrayed in such an authentic and multi-layered way?
I’m often asked that. I can’t really describe it from the outside because it’s my way of seeing people and the world. I think the extensive research goes into it. I’ve picked up lots of details in everyday life that give the characters depth, like all Jenny’s little habits: glitter, fingernails and her orchids.
They studied directing and documentary filmmaking, which is evident in the film, as it has a realistic, unembellished, documentary-like authenticity in some places. For example, there are the almost fairytale-like sequences when Jenny sticks glitter dust on her orchids or looks at the glass crystal spinning in the sunlight. What indicators inspire you in particular when composing such scenes?
Somehow I find this magic simply beautiful, and it offers the opportunity to look at life in its span. There are no places that are just dreary or happy. Life means contrasts, and we always find them in reality. I think we are trained to see one-dimensional characters through poor narratives in movies, which in turn changes the way we see the world.
Our online magazine focuses on the topic of “female empowerment”. Would you say that VENA has a special symbolic power with regard to “female empowerment” and, if so, which scene did you find particularly significant?
We break – I only realized this afterwards – with many narratives that have been established in patriarchal films over the years. The focus is on Jenny’s lust. If Jenny says she doesn’t feel like having sex, that’s not negotiable. She breaks away from an unhealthy relationship, she stands up for her opinion, in life and during childbirth. She gives birth to her daughter in a self-determined way as far as possible.
In the film industry itself, women are unfortunately still severely underrepresented in the field of directing or script development. Where do you see a particular need for action here?
In many areas! Since studying directing is often a second degree, the times for looking after a child and working on the final film coincide. It’s actually impossible to have a child and make a feature film at the same time. I was only able to do this thanks to a scholarship. I see an urgent need for action here to create scholarships for degrees with care responsibilities. There also needs to be more gender parity in the juries that decide on projects and material. But women also need to start with themselves, know their worth and stand up for working under the conditions they need. Those who do not negotiate confidently will make themselves smaller than necessary – and that can be the end of the beginning.
Our perspective on the film was broadened again in the course of this, as you also became a mother at the same time as the idea for VENA. When you received the prestigious “First Steps” award for the film, you spoke out very clearly in your acceptance speech in favor of better working conditions in the film industry. To what extent do you think there is a particular need to change the existing framework conditions with regard to families and single parents?
A big one. We are losing authentic stories and, as I said, also from people who come from economically weaker backgrounds. If the industry remains so exclusive in the transition from studies to the real film world, we will lose the most important stories. Our industry is the most family-unfriendly I know. There are many approaches, but there needs to be a connection between them and the opportunity to work regionally. I could talk about that for a long time…
Is there any advice you would like to give to young, aspiring female filmmakers?
Know your value – or get to know it! This will carry you through time and allow you to stand up for what you need. It is not you who want something from others, but the industry is dependent on our stories and perspectives. The pressure in the industry is so high that it can’t shut itself off from innovation or go under with confidence. So: don’t make yourselves smaller than you are, stay authentic and live before you write.
What could we as viewers do to promote not only gender diversity, but diversity in general?
All sorts of things! Write to editors when characters are told in a particularly modern or exciting way. Express wishes for new figures. If editorial teams realize that there is a social need for new role models, they can also argue this to decision-makers. Sometimes a simple e-mail is enough. And: Post reviews online or share them on social media. Tell us what you like!
Finally, we would like to give our community a little preview, because if you have such an extraordinary talent for directing, you certainly have some ideas for future projects: Is there a genre or movie idea that would particularly excite you in the future?
In my next film, I’m looking at the self-image of young people in times of a shift to the right and I’m setting up a film production in Weimar with two wonderful colleagues.
We are very happy about this inspiring interview. Dear Ms. Fleischhacker, thank you for expanding our view with VENA and taking it far away from the usual “male gaze” that we have been consuming for decades. You have brought a variety of emotions, people and stories to the screen that make us think and reflect.
About the author
Kinga Bartczak advises, coaches and writes on female empowerment, new work culture, organizational development, systemic coaching and personal branding. She is also the managing director of UnternehmerRebellen GmbH and publisher of the FemalExperts magazine .
