“The tensions and problems we face today were already present in this society”
– BERLINALE 2026: The filmmaker explains why she brought back into the spotlight the story that led to the first defamation lawsuit brought by women against an accusation of lesbianism
(© Edith Held)
Presented in the Panorama section of the 76th Berlinale, The Education of Jane Cumming [+see also:
film review
interview: Sophie Heldman
film profile] is Sophie Heldman‘s second feature film after Colors in the Dark [+see also:
trailer
film profile], which was discovered in competition at San Sebastián in 2010.
Cineuropa: Why did the story of Jane Cumming, which took place in Scotland in 1810 and was recounted in Lillian Faderman’s book Scotch Verdict, appeal to you?
Sophie Heldman: I found it extraordinary and very modern. The Scottish Enlightenment – what we now refer to as the Romantic era – was in some ways very free, yet at the same time incredibly restrictive. It is a fascinating period that laid the foundations upon which contemporary European and Western societies are built. Yet this surprisingly modern story is known to us only because it was preserved through a legal case, which is often true in queer history, as there are rarely children to carry on an oral tradition. This legal case functions like a time capsule, preserving a glimpse of a society in which the tensions and issues we face today were already present: struggles between social classes, privilege, racism, the far-reaching tentacles of an expanding imperial world, and, of course, sexuality. And even then, we were already interconnected: men from the East India Company had children in the colonies of the British Empire and brought them back to their homeland. The pleasure of this story lies in inviting audiences to view the present through the prism of the past and to engage in dialogue with this history, discovering for themselves what they find meaningful, how things have changed, how they remain the same or return, and so on. That is why the film’s structure remains quite open. There are multiple points of entry and a clear arc of tension, yet I tried to preserve the essence, the truth of the original story. It is a work of fiction, but it was essential to remain faithful to the factual elements at its core.
How did you approach working on the film’s rather unusual structure, with its patient build-up towards the core of the subject, which only truly emerges towards the end?
From the outset, I knew I wanted to end the film with the opening of the trial. I wanted to show what the legal documents do not reveal, what lies between the lines, that hidden world so often overlooked. After all, who truly cares about young girls or education? The two protagonist teachers tried to carve out a measure of freedom and independence within the social constraints in which they lived. They had almost certainly read Mary Wollstonecraft. I am convinced they were feminists ahead of their time, and that there is a link between them and the suffragette movement, and later with the feminist movements of the twentieth and twenty-first centuries. They represent all the women who have tried to claim a measure of independence and freedom, and to move society forward; something that feels strikingly contemporary. Yet they remain entirely anonymous: we know of their existence only because they were put on trial. I wanted to show that world because it is precisely the only one we know, having been preserved through the framework of a trial. As there are very few historical documents on the subject, it ultimately offers simply another way of looking at history.
What makes this legal case so particular is Jane Cumming – a girl from Calcutta and the daughter of a privileged Scottish man. Had she not been illegitimate, had she been a son, she would have inherited a vast fortune. Yet she was born to an Indian mother and must find herself between two worlds, two societies and two social classes. I wanted to explore how all these women became entangled in this legal case. What you see on screen is the result of a very long process of reflection, aimed at stripping away everything superfluous in order to reach the essence of that relationship.
It is not really a militant film about lesbian love.
I tried to avoid labels and focus solely on behaviours, relationships and consequences, allowing audiences to engage as adult viewers and offering them something they can explore for themselves: each person can decide what to take away from it and, in that sense, it is not an overtly political work. The film touches on many themes, and there are no ready-made answers, nor any simple responses to complex questions.
Usually, this kind of period film is very costly. How did you manage to get around that obstacle?
My producer, Bettina Brokemper (Heimatfilm), was wonderful and truly made it possible: I was able to shoot the script exactly as it was. And since, during my film studies, I worked as a first assistant, I have a strong sense of the time available on set. However, we could not secure any additional shooting days and had to save costs at every level. The entire team worked towards that goal, especially the remarkable production designer Renate Schmaderer.
(Translated from French)
