Is this latest Lux spec spot your graduation film?

No, it’s not my graduation film. After Mercedes-Benz, The Journey it is my second film in my third year at Film Akademie. Right now I am starting to work on my last two commercials for filmschool, so one year left to go.

Did you have a production company helping you too or was it done completely at school?

Some friends of mine run a production company in Hamburg called Saubere Filme. They supported us on this project and made a lot of things possible. They were a huge help!

Did you write the narrative? Or did someone else write the script and you did a treatment?

If I get the chance to bring up my own ideas, I go ahead. So especially the time at film school is a perfect playground for that. In cases like these I normally work on my ideas and scripts together with my friend and copywriter Gunnar Heuwold – he is like a soulmate when it comes to storytelling. So we both worked on Lux Save your skin as we did on Mercedes-Benz before.

What were the main challenges of making Lux?

The biggest challenge on the one hand was to present an authentic reflection of America in the 50s without having the money for it. Thankfully I could work with my production designer Cosima Vellenzer again who made everything possible. The other challenge was to shoot slow-motion at night with only a limited amount of light. It was tricky, but a good preparation made our night.

What part of the film making process do you enjoy the most?

I love the moment when it’s half-time on set and you have a good feeling about your work. Then I really start to enjoy being on set.

But for me it is the editing. It is like the moment of truth, where everything comes together. Here you can see whether all your thoughts and ideas work out and whether the decisions you made on the set were the right ones. It is such an important process, where so many parts of a puzzle can be changed and can make such a difference. It is part of filmmaking and a totally vital process!

Was it easier making Lux than your earlier film Mecedes Benz?

It is hard to compare these two films. Their challenges were totally different.

But telling the truth, Lux was definitely the easier way to go. No kids, not so many locations and more time to shoot!

Your Mecedes Benz film has done really well in picking up accolades -it picked up second prize in the YDA filmschool category in Cannes for instance. Has this helped you to win attention from production companies?

Yes, our Mercedes Benz film was really good to me. A lot of production companies got in contact with me which I had never expected. I am still in contact with them and look forward to working for the market. But first I need to finish filmschool – that’s definitely priority no.1!

What do you plan to do upon leaving the Film Akademie?

I want to apply for a pension. Just kidding. I want to tell stories – that is all!

What was behind your decision not to use the hidden scene in Mercedes? (See Related Content).

The hidden scene was never planned to be used in our actual commercial – it was always considered to be just an add-on that nobody should take too seriously. If we had actually used it, our intended spirit of an emotional journey would have been destroyed just by this scene.