GKIDS is releasing a new adult, sci-fi animated action drama in theaters nationwide beginning this Thursday May 2nd. Mars Express, from co-writer and director Jérémie Périn, is about a detective agency duo (one human, the other android) on the red planet during a dangerous time in the year 2200. What will they uncover? Here’s what moviegoers can expect from this 2023 Annecy selection and 2024 Cesar Awards nominee. (This interview with Périn was conducted as an Email Q&A and was edited for length and clarity.)

Jackson Murphy: How did you organize how this incredibly detailed futuristic society on Mars would function?

Jérémie Périn: We worked in layers. When writing the script with Laurent Sarfati, our aim was to depict a credible, tangible universe. As far as possible, we wanted to avoid magical or overly fanciful science fiction. That’s why we thought about the rules of the Mars Express universe, not only in terms of technology, but also from a political and social point of view, the organization of urban planning, etc. To do this, we met with specialists in various fields: planetologists, programmers, car designers… All of them contributed their expertise and inspired us to write, giving us ideas that could take us out of certain reflexes of sci-fi representations. With the broad outlines established in the script, it was a matter of making the whole thing visual and coherent. That’s where Mikael Robert, the film’s art director, and the various people in charge of mecha design, props, sets, etc. came in. We added even more ideas that consolidated and enriched the written basis of this world.

JM: What do you love about blending the science fiction and detective / mystery genres?

JP: Both genres seem to me to resonate in terms of mystery and existentialism. A detective tries to solve a case through the clues and chaotic puzzle pieces they find along the way, while the audience tries to decipher the rules of the science-fiction world they are presented with. There’s a kind of double investigative effect both inside and outside the film. Another aspect of science fiction that I like is when it brings existential vertigo, when it questions our place in the universe or challenges our self-centered human perspectives. I think the figure of the detective in search of truth, often solitary and navigating outside institutions, is also a bearer of existentialism.

JM: There are constant surprises in the story, especially unexpected visual moments. What were the challenges of crafting the script?

JP: The most difficult aspect was the film noir part. The investigation itself. As a screenwriter, you first need to know the solution to the enigma. Then you have to deconstruct that first story and find the clues that will lead the main characters to piece it together. All this while making the whole thing playful and coherent, to finally form your script. The challenge then is to integrate plausible science-fiction elements that also support the thematic sense of your script. I was also determined not to indulge in lengthy exposition of the character’ backgrounds, nor to explain the technologies and social organizations of the film’s universe. As the characters have lived in this world forever, they have no reason to remind each other how everything works around them. What surrounds them is the norm. So we had to make everything clear through action and clues scattered throughout the film.

JM: There’s so much depth to the animation, and a lot of it glows. What went into creating the unique look of the movie?

JP: Thank you very much. In this case, it was mainly a question of pushing further the experiments we’d made on our previous works with the film crews (It started on a music video called “Fantasy” for the band DyE and it continued on the first season of the show “Lastman”). Over time, I’ve built up a group of loyal and super-talented collaborators who share my love of effective, synthetic animation and visuals, and who seek to question the usual representations in mainstream animation. For example, I’ve made a point of drawing facial expressions that I don’t think are often seen in animation. I mention this here because I’m pleased that this detail has been noticed in the many feedbacks I’ve received on the film.

JM: What did you want to explore with the working relationship between Aline and Carlos?

JP: Above all, we needed this duo to shift the viewer’s perspective on the nature of robots throughout the film, as well as on the relationship between humans and AI in this world. Carlos’ very special status seemed ideal to us for showing the confusion into which the relationship between humanity and sentient machines could easily fall. Aline has never really been able to mourn the loss of her friend Carlos, who died five years before the start of the film, yet is now present by her side, resurrected as a robot. Is he a man? Is he just an emulator? But isn’t a powerful enough emulator already human enough in the eye of the beholder? And in the eye of the one concerned? In any case, Carlos doesn’t have the answer, and neither does Aline, to the point where it’s turned her into an alcoholic.

JM: Based on your experience making Mars Express, should we embrace or reject advancements in technology — or is it a more complicated debate?

JP: I wish I could answer yes or no, but you’ve obviously sensed that the answer is far more complicated. Human nature is indefinable, but I think technology has been part of it since the invention of the tool. Banning technology would be stupid, it’s part of us. I’m in favor of high-performance technology for the emancipation of mankind, for example, in the case of unnecessary and alienating physical labor. But if technological progress means pitting humans against machines, and enriching the owners of these technologies to the detriment of workers or the social fabric or our living conditions, then I don’t think we should accept it. Ultimately, it’s not so much technological progress that needs to be questioned, but rather the political project it underpins.

JM: What from this film do you believe will actually happen in the year 2200?

JP: We’ve deliberately chosen a year far enough in the future that we won’t be alive when that date arrives and we’ll be accused of being wrong. But to end on a slightly more optimistic note, I’d still say that what could really happen in 2200 is that humanity will still be present on Earth. In any case, I’m keeping my fingers crossed (not so optimistic after all, lol).

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Jackson Murphy

Jackson Murphy is a movie critic and entertainment columnist. He is the creator of the website Lights-Camera-Jackson.com, and has made numerous appearances on television and radio.

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