Female Gaze – CineOne & sPOTTlight National Award for Best Female Director of Photography in a Fiction Film

Jury’s statement (Greta Isabella Conte, Eva Maschke, Gisela Tuchtenhagen)

Lisa Jilg’s camera work in Vena is marked by a radical intensity that allows no distance. Bold, unflinching and documentary in quality, it draws the audience into the life, body and inner struggle of the protagonist Jenny. The camera moves close – enduring the moments that hurt, not shying away when confinement, loss of control and addiction fill the frame. This raw, dynamic visual language creates a physical intimacy rarely seen in such uncompromising form, generating an immense emotional impact.
The interplay between camera and light is particularly striking. In the apartment in the prefab housing block, the corridors and spaces where drugs are consumed, the lighting consistently deepens the sense of bleakness and hopelessness. Darkness is deliberately embraced; the absence of clear visibility becomes a storytelling tool. Cold, harsh or dim light intensifies the feeling of being locked inside addiction. Yet Vena does not remain in this darkness. When Jenny decides to go to a detox clinic, reclaim her life and become a mother to her unborn daughter Lexa, the light opens up – softening, expanding, reflecting inner strength, hope and a hard-won new beginning.
Even when Jenny must give up her daughter shortly after birth, each shot conveys the immense love she feels for her child. Through her cinematography, Lisa Jilg makes a state of being palpable. Her camera observes and bears witness – and in doing so, develops a compelling, unbridled power.

Guest: Lisa Jilg