Between Proximity and Distance
Self-Chosen Death in Documentary Film

Organized by

Anna Magdalena Elsner
Senior Fellow 2024–2025

Marc Keller
University of St. Gallen, CH

Filmpodium

Details

Venue:
Filmpodium
Nüschelerstrasse 11
8001 Zurich

Tickets available via Filmpodium.

Films play a crucial role in shaping political and social debates on assisted dying, rendering abstract ethical dilemmas palpable through compelling stories and powerful imagery. One such example is Jackie the Wolf (2023), a documentary by Tuki Jencquel.

The film follows Jacqueline Jencquel, the filmmaker’s mother, a healthy Frenchwoman who publicly declared her intention to die in Switzerland at 75. In her book Terminer en beauté (Ending in Beauty), she articulated her belief that she was “old enough to die,” a conviction she explores further in the documentary, where she draws a parallel between her own experience and that of Richard Gärtner, the 78-year-old protagonist of Ferdinand von Schirach’s play Gott. Jackie the Wolf portrays Jacqueline’s determined yet conflicted journey toward assisted death at 76, capturing both her steadfast resolve and the moments of doubt that punctuate it.

The screening of the Swiss premier of Jackie the Wolf is presented by the Collegium Helveticum in cooperation with the Filmpodium. It will be followed by a Q&A with Tuki Jencquel, film scholar Outi Hakola, author of Filming Death (2024), literary scholar Marc Keller, author of Sterbehilfe als Liebestod (2024), and Anna Elsner, PI of Assisted Lab.

In collaboration with

Filmpodium