The Julia Set

For Julia (Chase Infiniti, One Battle After Another), mathematics has always come naturally. But growing up, she learned to downplay her abilities to draw attention away from her high-needs sibling and perhaps not disrupt the expectations of others. Before long though, her intellectual talents are recognized by a teaching assistant, Pascal (Christopher Briney, The Summer I Turned Pretty), who recruits her into an elite group of student prodigies training for a highly prestigious undergraduate mathematics competition, The Putnam Exam.

Julia is thrown into the deep end, training with an infamously tough professor (Nina Hoss) who has already picked her favourites. Among them is Pascal, whose father (Jason Isaacs) is a giant in the field of mathematics. Unfortunately, his way of passing the baton is through intimidation. As the competition nears, tensions rise, sending Pascal spiralling but bringing out the best in slow and steady Julia.

Niki Byrne’s insightful debut explores how we decide who is groomed for genius and who is expected to be in a supporting role in ways that often come down to the body one is born into and the means of the family raising them. Infiniti is strong as the quietly capable Julia, aided by Chloe Bailey as her spirited best friend and Gillian Anderson in a powerful performance as a talented thinker in her own right watching Julia stand at a familiar crossroads.

ROBYN CITIZEN