22.04. ‐ 27.04.2025
Passengers of the Night

The Passengers of the Night

Mikhaël Hers

Elisabeth and her children are having a hard time in 1980’s Paris, after the family father leaves them behind. Elisabeth falls into a hopelessness that seems hard to overcome – only a new job in a nightly radio show that the sleepless mother likes to listen to brings transformation. A young girl named Talulah, joining them from the streets of Paris, is what truly brings a wind of change. Talulah is a challenge to the family dynamics. Her discovery of a nurturing and loving family is what helps all of them to grow.

Mikhaël Hers’ sentimental film helps a family soar. The strengths of the film shows itself in its tender narrative reality: without being overly dramatic, Elisabeth and her children learn through obstacles and disappointments to trust themselves.

Les passagers de la nuit premiered at the Berlin Film Festival 2022 in the competition.

More information Lichter FilmfestLichter Filmfest

Direction Mikhaël Hers
Country France
Year 2022
Duration 111 min
Language Original with English and German Subtitles
Production Pierre Guyard
Co-production Arte France Cinèma
Cast Charlotte Gainsbourg, Noèe Abita, Meghan Northam, Qito Rayon-Richter
Camera Sébastien Buchmann
Script Mikhaël Hers, Maud Ameline und Mariette Désert
Editing Marion Monnier
Music Anton Sanko

Presented by:

Press Reviews

Les passagers de la nuit is a film of awakening, letting go and goodbyes, a window into the process of emancipation and a warm celebration of maternal love and family connection. One could watch Charlotte Gainsbourg for hours and leave the cinema with warm feelings...“ (Rbb24)

„French director Mikhaël Hers, who explored the way forward for his characters after destabilizing loss in films like 2018’s Amanda, reveals comparable tenderness and attention to illuminating detail in The Passengers of the Night. [...] At heart, the story, co-written by Hers, Maud Ameline and Mariette Désert, is about the mending of two broken souls, each of them gradually finding their feet as free spirits, without the crutches of conventional marriage on one hand and drugs on the other..“ (Hollywood Reporter)



Hessian premiere

International Feature Film Program

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