Jann Kessler, 18, has seen his mother succumb bit-by-bit to multiple sclerosis, until she was forced to remain in bed, unable to speak or move. Hoping to understand more about this mysterious disease, he interviews others who live with it: Bernadette, Luana, Mélanie, Oliver, Graziella and Rainer. He films them as they go about their daily lives, listens to their confessions and tries to understand how someone can overcome the challenges posed by this illness, about which so much is still unknown.

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Barely 18, Jann Kessler nonetheless is blessed with courage and self-confidence. With a small camera and a GoPro, he goes on a difficult mission that he fulfills with disarming sincerity, simplicity and humanity, allowing his subjects to open up and share their fears, anguish, pain, but also their knowing smiles and daily adventures. Staying off-screen except for a few minutes of narration, Kessler pushes discussions to the edge, especially one about the idea and reality of suicide. He then subsequently films his mother, asking “Is her life still worth living?”. Multiple Fates is a gripping documentary and undeniable proof of this young filmmaker’s astonishing maturity, as he makes it clear he is a collateral victim of MS.