Maria Furtwängler on sex scenes: “Will he stick his tongue in me while kissing?”

Maria Furtwängler’s new TV drama “Until Truth” is about a sexual assault. The leading actress and co-producer talks about how filming intimate scenes in the film has changed.

In “Until Truth” (Wednesday, November 20th, 8:15 p.m., ARD), Maria Furtwängler plays a successful doctor who embarks on an afternoon flirtation with her friend’s son.

But at the end of the day there is an attack, which is initially kept quiet. The precise film skilfully irons out the topic of sexual violence and irritates with details that are different from those we know from rape films.

In the conversation, idea creator, co-producer and leading actress Maria Furtwängler explains which false ideas about sexual violence are still popular and in circulation today – and how film shoots have changed massively as a result of thinking and talking about sexual violence.

Ms. Furtwängler, lately you’ve been seeing films and series on German television that may discuss non-consensual sex…

Compared to before, more substances are being produced in which the possible perpetrator comes from the private environment. Which, by the way, corresponds much more to reality than in the past, when rapists were dark fellows who came out of a dark alley at night. I think that around the debate and the law “No means no” a different awareness has arisen – including among filmmakers.

There was, among other things, Schirach’s “She says. He says,” the series “37 Seconds,” the “Crime Scene: Video Evidence” and now your film on the subject. What effect do such pieces have on the audience?

That we are slowly but surely breaking away from the cliché that my generation knows from its childhood and perhaps originated in front of the television via formats like “Aktenzeichen XY”. The roles were clearly assigned and the perpetrators had a clear profile. Rape in a private environment was virtually unheard of in the mainstream media’s perception.

And we must not forget: who made films back then? It was predominantly men who served this narrative. It is still the case today: the numbers show that the most dangerous place for a woman is her home.

Your film mixes up a few more clichés.

I assume you mean that the woman appears significantly more powerful. She is much older, experienced, successful in her career, and has a strong personality. And the perpetrator: a young, sweet guy. Actually quite charming in his personality. When “Until Truth” was shown at the Munich Film Festival, there were certainly reactions from the brand: “They shouldn’t act like that, after all, he looked good.” Others found the film completely disturbing and frightening. It’s exactly where we wanted to be. For discussion: “What is rape?”

As clear as the rule “no means no” sounds, there are moments even in consensual, even pleasurable sex that have to do with playful refusal. A sensitive topic, yes, but also one that cannot be discussed away, right?

Because it is so delicate and sometimes ambiguous, films like ours take on an important task: you have to think about what actually happened using concrete situations as examples. But there are other factors, for example the shame of the victims. In the monstrous Gisèle Pélicot rape case in France, she coined an epoch-making sentence: “Shame must change sides.” Apparently this woman, who was systematically raped by her husband and other men over the years, was also confronted with the fact that she could also be somewhat to blame for it. This view urgently needs to change.

You see your character before the rape, masturbating, smoking weed, and flirting with her rapist on the day that ends with the crime. How important was it to you that your character was a bit “wicked”, as people would have said in the past…

Do you mean that she has a sexuality and wants to enjoy her life? It was extremely important to us that my character had this sexuality – before and after the crime. Because it is simply the reality that it can be that way. No matter how traumatizing the act seems. A thought that we have to get away from: that real victims don’t feel pleasure, aren’t allowed to be playful, and don’t really like themselves in their sexuality. In the rape cliché, it’s always the wallflower that the terrible thing happens to.

There is another female character, played by Margarita Broich, who is both her character’s best friend and the perpetrator’s mother. What did you want to show her?

For example, that female solidarity also has its limits when one is so personally affected. Your own son is then closer to you than your girlfriend. And there are even sayings like: “Yes, you have cheated on your husband before.” This is also a cliché accusation that is intended to reduce the seriousness of rape. Even though he doesn’t do anything to the matter.

Martina, your role in the film “Until the Truth”, is not a completely likeable character…

No, and that was also important to us. The way she treats her husband, for example, is not particularly nice. She definitely has her strenuous traits. But that also fits with the overall concept that all the characters are ambivalent. We also have no problem with ambivalence in a man. For women it is still highlighted as something special.

Our film was made by women in key creative areas, such as writing and directing. Even though our team was only about 50 percent female in the end, everyone noticed how unusually female it was. I think you can see it in the finished film, which I had a big influence on as initiator and co-producer. Everything we are talking about here was important to us to show.

The fact that Martina feels a zest for life, which is shown above all before the crime, also seems to be important to you. How ecstatic can you live when you’re over 50?

This is a somewhat strange question. It is indeed a topic that interests me. I recently saw a video of maybe 75 year old women dancing quite ecstatically. The video has gone viral, which probably means a lot of people had a good laugh at it. At 20, I probably would have done the same. But the closer you get to old age, the more I think: Why not? The desire for life, including sexuality, doesn’t just go away…

Only young people think that, right?

Yes, and I understand that too. Nothing is worse for teenagers than unreasonable parents who do crazy things that you thought were reserved for you and your own generation. I remember that when I was a teenager, the idea of ​​my parents having sex seemed completely disgusting to me. That’s just how you are at this age. When things are going well, parents represent stability and predictability in a positive sense.

This film also used an intimacy coach, someone who accompanies intimate scenes on the film set or in the theater. How much has the job changed your career?

It is a very important job and it has changed our profession a lot. It starts with the fact that today there are hardly any filmings with intimate scenes where this position is not filled. When you see how work is done there, you wonder what it used to be like without it Intimacy Coordinaton expired. Sexual scenes in the film are actually like stunts. They represent a special challenge for the actors because they go beyond fears and boundaries. Previously, no one would have thought of filming a stunt without stunt people or stunt coordinators.

How exactly does the work with the intimacy coach work?

It begins with a one-on-one conversation with the, or often the, coordinator. As an actress or actor you tell her where you want to be touched and where you don’t. What actions you might have problems with. You discuss what the camera is allowed to do and perhaps also who is allowed to be in the room. She also accompanies the scene itself. Sometimes certain parts of the body are taped off to feel more confident as an actress or actor. It goes as far as handing out mouthwash after kissing (laughs). You feel really well protected by the position of intimacy coach.

And things used to be completely different?

Yes. Not only was it very different before, but it was also very unpleasant.

Because no one knew exactly what he or she was allowed to do?

Sex scenes were usually frightening for us actors. People thought in advance: Oh God, what if it grabs me here or there? Or: Will he stick his tongue in me while kissing? You have to imagine this: you become intimate with people you barely know just because a script wants you to. You don’t know what’s about to happen. It’s an absurd, inhumane situation. You just couldn’t really let yourself fall into the scene, which is the goal of acting. On the other hand, if you know what the other person is about to do and that has been discussed, you can play a scene much better, I think.

Nude scenes in films used to be taboo. Eventually they became more normal. For several years now, people have been questioning whether nudity is necessary for a scene or whether it just serves voyeurism. Some complain that this has made films more prudish. What is your position?

As the actress of a “crime scene” detective, I am definitely glad that people now often refrain from showing very young female corpses naked on the autopsy table or undressed at the scene of the crime. I think there used to be a lot of unnecessary and degrading voyeurism at this point. I generally think it’s good that you think about which scenes are necessary to show in terms of the plot. This includes both the masturbation and the rape scene in “Until the Truth”. But I also think that in violent scenes you often show things that aren’t necessary. When it comes to nude scenes, a lot is said about the male gaze discussed, i.e. the fact that female nudity in films is usually ok, but male nudity is not. Why actually? Because men determined what was interesting in films. We must not restrict artistic creativity in film – but we also have to look closely at why things are the way they are in the film.

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