Interview with Zsuzsanna Kreif, Adgwa-Ata director

An intoxicating pop explosion, Adgwa-Ata invents a tropical world populated by a mysterious tribe of Amazons who impose a violent coming-of-age ritual on three teenage girls. Bright colours and shamanic techno whisk us into parallel dimensions, where the divine takes shape in the form of unsettling snakes that the protagonists will have to tame. Zsuzsanna Kreif crafts a complex mythology, rich in symbols that rush across the screen, ushering us into an imaginary world as lush as it is disquieting. 

Interview with Zsuzsanna Kreif

An imaginary world 

Adgwa-Ata is not far from science fiction. I created a completely imaginary world. The action takes place on another planet, with its own fauna and flora. The title of the film – the name of divine origin given to one of the protagonists – is a made-up word. I like how it sounds and how it looks. This jungle is a metaphor for our modern societies, which I have transposed to a wild ancestral setting. A primordial nature contrasts with this violent tribe, which does not comply with its rules. The environmental dimension is one of the many lenses through which the film can be understood. 

Bright colours 

I use bright colours, combining them to express emotional states. I find them exciting. My use of colour echoes the work of David Hockney; I love his choice of tones and the way he works with light. The drawings by Moebius, his weird and gorgeous science-fiction universes, are also a major source of inspiration. I allowed myself great freedom in the graphic style, shifting the atmosphere according to the different dimensions the characters move through. 

Mythology 

At the origin of this universe are these female tribes surrounded by snakes, which I have always drawn in my notebooks. I then built a whole mythological world around them, complete with many rituals. The snakes are gifts from the deities, which the tribal leaders divert from their sacred purpose. These reptiles can be seen as phallic symbols associated with masculinity. But they also embody many other things: wisdom, rebirth, transformation… They lie at the heart of an initiation ritual that involves the ingestion of a strange black liquid. This sacred brew, which opens onto other dimensions, clearly evokes the Ayahuasca-based preparations made by shamans. At the end of Adgwa-Ata I present a new system in which different generations share their knowledge, making the initiation ritual less violent and more integrated. 

Shamanic techno

I wanted to create an experience that was as immersive as possible, designed as an actual installation. Sound and music are therefore essential. I combined shamanic trance with Berlin techno. For the scenes with the teenage girls, I chose a more melodic score. As we enter the divine world, the sound becomes more ambient. Composer Natalie Szend created these different musical layers. Sound design is key in creating this distinctive atmosphere, at the intersection of science fiction, thriller, and pop-infused horror.