Acquired out of Cannes for a December release stateside by 1-2 Special, La Gradiva follows a French class on a school trip to Pompeii. The film features an ensemble cast composed almost entirely of newcomers. Co-directing photography with Pierre Mazoyer, Atlan, an acclaimed cinematographer, crafted a stark realist aesthetic, immersing viewers in the daily lives of dozens of students grappling with confusing crushes, future anxieties, and arguments about modern capitalism. The film’s seamless verisimilitude is a testament to Atlan’s authority behind the camera and the extensive research that informed the script, painting a portrait of adolescence that feels both bracingly contemporary and achingly timeless.

La Gradiva takes a tragic turn in its final act, prompting a reexamination of the loose, observant filmmaking that precedes it. The arcs of its main characters—Toni (Colas Quignard), investigating his family’s connection to Pompeii; his best friend James (Mitia Capellier-Audat), seemingly blessed with everything; and loner Suzanne (Suzanne Gerin), fed up with her peers—converge in surprising, heartbreaking ways. In the process, Atlan asserts herself as a major director to watch.

Below, Atlan breaks down the various stages of making La Gradiva and what the last few months have been like since its electric Cannes launch.

The Genesis of an Idea

“The idea came to me for a film that I imagined could be more quickly made, instantaneous in a sense, and gathering together a troupe of people,” Atlan explains. She drew inspiration from a series of well-known 1990s French films, Tous les garçons et les filles de leur âge, by filmmakers like André Téchiné and Chantal Akerman. Her core desire was to assemble a group of non-professional young people and confront them with 2,000-year-old ruins, exploring the narrative and aesthetic possibilities of such a contrast.

Atlan also connected with Wilhelm Jensen’s text Gradiva, and Freud’s interpretation of Pompeii as a metaphor for the unconscious. While another film project proved resistant, La Gradiva quickly took hold, particularly its choral nature, multiple characters, and Toni’s journey. “The basic desire for this film was indeed the contrast between a specific territory and this group of young people. The relationship between the present and the remains of the past.”

The Extensive Casting Process

“Like a lot of things on this film, it was work that was done in layers,” Atlan notes. After crafting an initial screenplay with co-writer Anne Brouillet, they embarked on a two-year casting process. This involved working with two casting directors and a small crew for street casting—visiting high schools, political demonstrations, and non-professional acting classes—to find the three leads and build the surrounding class ensemble.

Once the leads were found, discussions with them were crucial. “We talked about that a good deal with Colas Quignard, who plays Toni. He told us what he felt he could and couldn’t do, and so we rewrote based on that.” Months of rehearsals followed, incorporating improvisations that were recorded and reviewed. These sessions allowed Atlan and Brouillet to adjust the story and deepen the characters. For example, the character of James, initially conceived as privileged and handsome, took on a new dimension with actor Mitia Capellier-Audat. “When Mitia came into the project, we found a level of androgyny and fluidity with that—the character that creates a really different relationship to masculinity. These were things that perhaps would have been less obvious at first glance.”

Immersive Research

From the outset, Atlan prioritized a documentary-style approach to avoid fantasizing about the current generation. “It was very important… not to fantasize about this generation—to go looking for what is immutable, unchangeable about adolescence, about being 17… and also to find what is specific to this generation and this contemporary moment.” They interviewed young people about gender, sexuality, feminism, and environmentalism, and even accompanied a school trip to observe the intense dynamics of these moments firsthand.

This research revealed a constant interplay between her own memories and new observations. “There was this constant back and forth in making the film between things that I was reliving and then also things that I was seeing in these young people that my generation did not experience or that didn’t characterize my generation.” She observed a more precise vocabulary among young people to identify power relations and a more intense relationship with the world’s violence and disillusionment. Yet, amid this, their presence and wonder at Pompeii’s ruins instilled a sense of hope.

The Filmmaking Evolution

Atlan shared director of photography duties with Pierre Mazoyer, a close collaborator. “On the one hand, I wanted to hold the camera… but I realized that with 20 actors and actresses, it was work that I wasn’t going to be able to do alone.” They began with a very realistic, documentary approach to the image, immersing themselves in Naples’ specific light and saturation.

Gradually, the visual style evolved. “Little by little we directed the image toward something more lyrical. We allowed effects of color and movement into the film, and really we moved the film toward melodrama.” Atlan cited Douglas Sirk as an influence, working with the costume designer and gaffer to highlight specific colors, particularly in Toni’s final scene at the port. The latter part of the film also allowed for longer, less-cut shots and more movement, aiming to transpose the characters to eventually take on an “ancient or antique power” while maintaining a celluloid-like texture.

The Whirlwind Post-Premiere

“Above all, things have been moving very fast,” Atlan reflects. Finishing the film just days before its Cannes premiere, the tremendous enthusiasm was deeply moving for her, the cast, and the crew. Immediately after Cannes, she transitioned to working as a director of photography on another woman director’s debut feature.

Now, as La Gradiva prepares for releases in various countries, she receives many messages and feels the excitement. However, she admits, “I think that I don’t entirely realize what’s happening yet. And it’s been very helpful for me to be involved in the concrete, technical things of working on another film—it’s helped me keep a cool head. I haven’t quite measured what is going on with my own film yet.”