Director Edward Berger Teases New Papal Drama ‘Conclave’ On Set Hours After ‘All Quiet On The Western Front’ BAFTA Draw

Edward Berger says he only realized the BAFTAs were coming his way at the final awards show of the night, when Best Picture became the seventh trophy added to his film. If he knew No news from the western front, his adaptation of Erich Maria Remarque’s World War I novel would be so well received that he may have taken the next day off. Instead, he left the Netflix party around 2 a.m. for a flight to Rome, in time for a 9 a.m. phone call at the historic Cinecittà Studios and a full day of filming on the sequel.

An adaptation of the 2016 novel by Robert Harris, conclaveThe star-studded cast includes Ralph Fiennes, Stanley Tucci, Lucian Msamati, John Lithgow and Isabella Rossellini. Fiennes plays Cardinal Lawrence, who is thrown in at the deep end when the Pope dies unexpectedly. Tasked with organizing an election to find a new leader for the Catholic Church, Lawrence must contend with opposing factions within the Vatican while questioning his own candidacy and the claim to power that the position brings.

Berger says, “It’s about a spiritual journey of doubt that Ralph’s character goes through, but it’s also about the election of a pope in the present day. I was intrigued by the main character’s journey and the fact that it was an interesting story about the struggle for power and the power games that go on behind the scenes.”

Deadline for invitation to Rome, just a few days later All quiet‘s BAFTA success, Berger will be working on Stage 15 today. The big giveaway is a procession of cardinals, all 118 of them, walking down the aisle waiting to film the day’s scene. Upstairs in his office, Berger points out the window to the next building. “There is the Fellini stage where he used to shoot,” he says. “There’s a plaque that says, ‘If there’s a house anywhere, it’s this.’ It’s much more his home than it was his home.”

The director has been in Rome since October and says the production is being forced to settle there. “There is a lot of outdoor space and we need the Roman architecture,” he explains. “Obviously, if you’re just working in the studio, you can go in any direction. But we also have to recreate the Vatican, because you can’t shoot in the Vatican. We explored a lot of countries – Hungary and Prague – and we just felt that the texture of Rome gave us the architecture we needed for the film as a whole.

As a result, Phase 15 “essentially became a full-scale reconstruction of the Sistine Chapel. We’re on this set for six days and we’re filming the voting process. It must be quite a task to recreate the Sistine Chapel. how did he do it? “I haven’t done it, so I have no idea,” he laughs. “But it looks great. You will see. The ceiling is clearly not there. It will be CG. But everything else up to the first floor has been built.”

Conclave will still shoot for the Oscars on March 13 No news from the western frontThe nine nominations will be reconsidered after the Bafta, but Berger doesn’t seem too worried about that. Doesn’t he need a break? He shrugged his shoulders. “I’m done editing All quiet… about 15 or 16 months ago, in November [2021]and then the VFX took until May – it’s a slower process so it’s not as intense – and then I started slowly conclave. About three or four months after I finished All quiet… I started this movie. There was definitely a time in between.”

And he adds: “Rome is not the worst place. You’re away from family, which is hard, but it’s really nice to experience another country and work with different people from different countries and get to know the place in a completely different way. I still feel at home. I will only take two suitcases and come and stay for a few months.”