How much can you trust your intuition in a factual world void of error? It’s a fundamental question that Lena Stahl poses in her film adaptation of the Juli Zeh novel Corpus Delicti. Set in a near-future society governed by the “Method” – a system that enforces health and transparency above all – the story follows neuroscientist Mia Holl, a model citizen whose life unravels when her brother Moritz is accused of murder.
The director has brought together an acclaimed creative team alongside a stellar cast including Damian Hardung, Alexander Fehling, Haley Louise Jones, Christian Friedel and Hannah Herzsprung, who plays the lead. It’s the actor and director’s biggest collaboration to date; and in the throes of film promotion, including a Cartier- bedecked 10 DE shoot, the two friends sat down to talk about their creative process, the importance of working with German talent and why the film’s overriding theme of autonomy is so prescient…
How did you first meet?
Hannah Herzsprung: We met via a shared project.
Lena Stahl: Just to clarify, this happened a long time ago [laughs]. I had requested Hannah for this other project, which is still to be made, and that’s how we initially met. We wanted to shoot it, but somehow Corpus Delicti serendipitously weaselled its way in before that.
In 2021, you worked together on Mein Sohn as well. What’s it been like working and being friends at the same time?
HH: Trust is already there. During filmmaking, you get to know each other very quickly and intensely. Before working together, naturally you do your research, but eventually you have to decide if you commit to the person and the project. In our case, the relationship grew over years, and we got to watch and support each other along the way. Lena has always been there to exchange ideas. And it was always professional! I knew the friendship would remain, because it’s strong and nothing can take that away from us. However, it’s not like we see each other every evening after work. For this film, we actuallydidn’t at all.
LS: Literally.
HH: I haven’t been to your apartment in Prague once.
LS: Which is exactly why I was so happy when you called me that one time after your run, asking if I wanted to pop down for a minute.
HH: That was in the very beginning, I still needed you then [laughs].
LS: We weren’t in friendship mode at all. Just casually asking to grab an espresso together felt like a welcome surprise. Randomly bumping into each other in some corner of Prague: “What are you doing here?” [Laughs]
Watching the film, I could tell that everyone was tuning in to one another with respect and care, especially the relationship between Mia and Moritz.
HH: It’s an easy claim to make as actors: we are brother and sister. Damian, Lena and I had this intense week together with Giles Foreman, a brilliant acting coach. I formed this deep, trustful bond with Damian that goes far beyond acting. A feeling of being siblings rather than just pretending. When he enters a room now, I look at him and think: “There’s my little brother.” Crazy, right? What a gift. Plus Lena being so open in participating herself.
LS: After spending that week together, we built such a strong foundation of trust that, when we started shooting, we felt completely free to explore and take risks. This is what makes filmmaking so magical.
Damian Hardung has played that role before in a 2022 theatre production. What kind of dynamic did that bring?
LS: It was great. I talked to him earlier today about the fact that our collaboration all started via letters. Working on the script, I had him in mind for the role, so I reached out. I had no idea he’d played the character before. He came in with a critical stance on my script, which really intrigued me and inspired one of the scenes. Damian is a huge philosophy fan, always reading major works. Hence, a lot of the material felt familiar to him.
Corpus Delicti combines great local talent with international experience. That’s always the appeal of European cinema.What reactions are you expecting?
LS: Right now, German film has immense potential. Yet, this one sticks out from the rest, mainly because of the still prevalent divide between mainstream and arthouse. To me, our film fits right in the middle. Corpus Delicti is meant for a wide audience, but still meets high artistic standards. That’s important to me and I know there is nothing comparable in Germany right now. Hence, I don’t know what it will bring, but I am glad that my producers Quirin Berg und Max Wiedemann, together with LEONINE, took the leap and made it happen. After all, we had six Oscar-winners on our team – the kind of talent great cinema demands, and I am incredibly proud we pulled it off.
Lena, the script is an interpretation of the book. What are the essential aspects that make the film adaptation unmistakably yours?
LS: Originally, the story was written for theatre. I always read it like a fable, a Kafkaesque approach.That’s the character set-up – very consciously verging on cliché. For film, you can’t do that. Mia Holl, for example, felt very passive to me in the book. Which is why my first impulse was to make her significantly more active. Plus, a lot of the plot is told retrospectively in the book.My main goal was transporting everything into the now by letting viewers experience it through the main character. And what makes it “Lena Stahl”? I’d say my style of narration is character-driven within a genre that’s actually plot-driven.
HH: I can only thank Lena for creating something that is so her. It’s thrilling to approach this story that way. Personally, I love reading novels and always have a little film running in my head. And I truly couldn’t agree more with Lena’s adaptation.
Where did you shoot?
LS: The movie was shot entirely in Prague. Production designer Christian Goldbeck made great use of the city’s brutalist architecture, while we digitally expanded all the exterior locations. Our aim was to create a non-speccific European city of the future.
The play was first shown in 2007 and the novel released in 2009, yet the plot feels as timely and relevant as ever. What is it that makes the story so relatable for audiences now?
LS: There are many centuries- old themes. Take, for example, love as something that makes one believe in irrational things. A character who lives in a rational world is thrown into an irrational situation that makes them change their belief system. Since Orwell, the idea of an oppressive, controlling state and what that does to the individual has been omnipresent in many books and films. Dystopian worlds are intriguing but scary. By building such a world, cinematic or literary, a controlled environment to experience it becomes available. And you have heroes and heroines showing what happens if you go against the system, which is valuable for many reasons.
German students read the novel as part of their final exams. Why is it important for younger generations?
LS: Young people today are confronted with AI on every level. What do they still do entirely on their own? And how much of their work is truly the result of their own thinking? It’s a huge topic of debate within education. Really delving deep into a novel is such a beneficial process for anyone, especially younger people. When I think back to my final exams, the things I’ve learned, also on an emotional level, are so important. You take away a lot from dealing with such complex ideas, conflicts and questions as depicted in Corpus Delicti. How much am I willing to give to a system? How far is my free will compromised? I think it’s incredibly relevant for the students’ development.
HH: As Lena said, one has to go through that process. The journey is the reward. Similarly to going through scripts, it’s not about just learning the lines. As an actor, you have to really get the story in order to portray it according to how the author has conceptualised it.
How did you approach character-building?
HH: The script’s my main foundation. Damian and I had it earlier, so that we didn’t really have these classic table reads where by the end, everyone has a thousand questions. We read it and shot it, nothing to ask, simply due to the fact that Lena had written it so well and discussed it with us in such detail. The great thing about directing and acting is that while yes, I do portray Lena’s interpretation of a character, there is so much fun in finding common ground through discussing a role.
Are there memorable moments you keeping thinking about?
HH: Oh, plenty! Let alone because this entire film was shot in seven weeks.
LS: It was the hardest job I’ve ever had to do, but also the most enriching one I’ve ever experienced. A while ago, a colleague said that once a film is ready for release, you no longer have control over it. It is what it is. From there fate takes over. But what matters most is knowing that together you’ve created something truly magical. Needless to say,we had some real challenges, especially Hannah. I mean, she had one day off. I distinctly remember one scene, the absolute lowest point for her character, which we had just wrapped. The director of photography, Philipp Haberlandt, stepped away from the scene with tears in his eyes. Looking around the room, everyone was crying – even the Czech crew members who couldn’t understand the dialogue. They were an incredibly empathetic group of people who worked so well together despite any language barrier.
HH: Respect also. That’s what makes filming emotional scenes possible. There was no need to tell people to be silent and concentrate. It was a given, and I have rarely experienced that to such an extent. As an actress I sometimes ask myself, do I really fully go for that emotion now? You can’t prep raw scenes, you have to be in that headspace. Especially for my character, Mia, who finds herself in a moral dilemma. I felt empowered and fearless. It’s not easy to do that – it is extremely intimate, more than a love or sex scene.
LS: In the end, it all boils down to trust. It’s woven through every layer of this production, which perfectly ties in with the overarching theme of Corpus Delicti – intuition versus facts.
HH: Voilà! Full circle.
Photographer MARK PILLAI
Fashion Editor MARIE-LOUISE VON HASELBERG
Talent HANNAH HERZSPRUNG and LENA STAHL
Text LISA ZIRNGAST
Hair ADIAM HABTEZION using BJORN AXEN
Make-up LEE HYANGSOON using GUCCI Beauty
Manicurist MADDIN TRUONG
Set designer DESIREE KLEIN
Digital operator KARO KLOSS
Photographer’s assistant PAUL SKULIMMA
Fashion assistants MICHELLE STOLL and ELISA HANKE
Production JUSTIN LAHMER at Berlin Westend
Post-production NITTY GRITTY BERLIN
Special thanks to SARAH LOU FALK at NEXT MANAGEMENT, 1ST FLOOR
