Janet Planet

Janet Planet is the feature directorial debut of Pulitzer Prize-winning playwright Annie Baker, who won the 2014 Pulitzer for Drama for her play The Flick. Baker, a 1999 graduate of Amherst Regional High School, drew deeply from her own Western Massachusetts upbringing for this intimate coming-of-age story. The film stars Julianne Nicholson as Janet and Zoe Ziegler (in her screen acting debut) as 11-year-old Lacy, with supporting performances from Elias Koteas, Will Patton, and Sophie Okonedo. Set in rural Western Massachusetts during the summer of 1991, the story follows Lacy as she navigates the orbit of her single mother Janet, an acupuncturist, while three visitors enter their lives over the course of the season. The narrative unfolds across three chapters, each defined by a different person drawn to Janet's magnetic presence, exploring themes of attachment, independence, and the quiet intensity of childhood observation. Filming took place during the summer of 2022 across numerous towns in the Pioneer Valley and surrounding hill towns. Key locations include Mount Pollux, the glacial drumlin off South East Street in South Amherst, which features prominently in the film. The production also filmed at Hampshire Mall in Hadley, a Hadley ice cream stand, and captured Northampton's History of Women mural on Masonic Street. The Double Edge Theatre in Ashfield served as the location for an outdoor theatrical performance sequence. Additional filming occurred in Leverett, Easthampton, Williamsburg, Chesterfield, Cummington, and Springfield. Janet Planet premiered at the 50th Telluride Film Festival on September 1, 2023, and also screened at the 61st New York Film Festival before receiving a limited theatrical release on June 21, 2024 via A24. The film earned strong critical acclaim, holding an 84% score on Rotten Tomatoes and an 83 on Metacritic, indicating universal acclaim. It received three nominations at the 40th Independent Spirit Awards: Best First Feature, Best First Screenplay, and Best Cinematography.