© Encore Pictures
The Luxembourgish filmmaker takes us behind the scenes of the short film series produced ahead of this weekend’s royal transition.
Launched ahead of Hereditary Grand Duke Guillaume’s first day as the new head of state, the five-part series directed by Max Jacoby and produced by Encore pictures, takes viewers through each stop of Saturday's ceremonial tour.
Roxanne Peguet, co-producer of the project dubbed Direktioun Trounwiessel, explains how Laurent Loschetter (Atelier) approached the team in March with an initial concept. "He had a clear idea of the concept; in fact, he knew exactly what kind of notes he wanted and what he was aiming for", she says. From the very beginning the goal was clear: showcasing Luxembourg and its film sector.
Given the limited time and budget, the team decided on showing snippets of old and new Luxembourgish productions, in line with each video's specific theme, rather than producing an original film from scratch. "We didn’t want to leave anyone out", says Peguet, referring to the challenge of trying to represent all aspects of the industry, from feature films to documentaries and animation.
The story is told through the lens of the palace's chauffeur, played by Jules Werner, as he drives the royal couples’ "godparents", various Luxembourgish personalities, to their ceremonial destinations.
The first video, released on Monday, shows tennis player Anne Kremer on the way to Grevenmacher’s "Op Flohr" Stadium, the first stop on Saturday’s itinerary. Kremer, playing herself, asks Werner if he likes movies, to which he replies "Who doesn’t?"; the film promptly cuts to scenes from Luxembourgish films like Roger (1995), En Dag am Fräien (2012), and Rusty Boys (2017).
Co-productions such as Corsage, starring Vicky Krieps, were deliberately excluded: "We only wanted Luxembourgish films, no co-productions", says Peguet.
After the initial concept was decided on, the team took on Max Jacoby as the director: "We specifically looked for a Luxembourgish director", says Peguet, adding: "someone who understands Luxembourgish and knows the film culture."
Peguet, who runs Encore Pictures together with Jules Waringo and Tun Biever, explained that the team also collaborated with the National Audiovisual Centre (CNA) and its previous director, Paul Lesch. The latter played a crucial part in putting together the list of films included in the project. "He’s like an Encyclopedia, he knows everything", says Peguet, adding: "When we asked him which films had been shot in Grevenmacher, he immediately went: that one, that one and that one."
Filming took place over the course of four days in July 2025, with postproduction wrapping in August.
A new part of the series will be released each day this week until (and including) Friday. You can watch the first two episodes here.
