The comet is coming! 14-year-old Lea is torn from the life she’s accustomed to in a flash when her parents take her and her brother off to the mountains. Her family has become enmeshed in a cosmic cult promising salvation on a higher plane of existence on Jupiter. Little by little, Lea’s memories reveal her family’s struggle to find stability in life. Her autistic brother, her overwhelmed parents and their downward spiral into insanity force Lea to make a decision: between death and a life of self-determination here on Earth.

Benjamin Pfohl’s feature-film debut is blessed with a brilliant cast: Laura Tonke and Andres Döhler as hopelessly lost parents, Ulrich Matthes as a charismatic cult leader and young Mariella Aumann as an entirely believable Lea. JUPITER is based on the short film of the same name which won an award in the German Short Film Competition at exground filmfest in 2019.

Benjamin Pfohl studied at the University of Television and Film Munich (HFF). As a DAAD scholar he lived and worked in Buenos Aires and Tunis. His graduation short JUPITER (2019) competed in more than 70 film festivals, was selected for the German Films’ “Next Generation Showcase” and shortlisted for the BAFTA Student Film Awards. After directing the six-part thriller series DECISION GAME, he started production on his debut feature JUPITER. He lives and works in Berlin/Germany.

Filmography: 2014 GHOSTS, 2019 JUPITER (both short films), 2022 DECISION GAME (TV series), 2023 JUPITER

Awards (selection): Award for Best International Film (Fantaspoa Film Festival, Porto Alegre/Brazil 2024), Young Jury Award (Sofia International Film Festival, Bulgaria 2024)