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Interview with Thierry Binisti (Director)
How did you get involved in this production?
I was approached by the producer and the screenwriter, Jean-Pierre Alessandri and Olga Vincent, people I had the opportunity to work with in the past, and I was thrilled to work with Patricia Kaas. Also, they knew I had experience directing someone who doesn’t have an acting background. They trusted me.
What message did you want to put across with the film?
This is a message about the difficulty of mourning a loved one. In the event of a loss, there’s not enough material, no hard evidence to start this process. Cathy can’t master her destiny, she’s about to give up, and she will totally lose interest in life.
How did you select the cast and how did singer Patricia Kaas got the main role?
It was the producer’s call. He saw Patricia Kaas in a TV show while he was looking for an actress for the lead role. When watching her interview, he immediately fell under her spell - he felt she spoke sincerely, and he saw in her a genuine person. After a few tries, we saw her potential, different from what came out of her songs, and we gave her the role of Cathy.
Patricia is mainly known as a singer, how easy or challenging was to have her as an actress?
It’s not my first try directing people who don’t have an acting career. I always consider it an interesting challenge. It was a pleasure working with Patricia Kass, because she was willing and spontaneous. It was a lot of work and practice. She played along and gave a lot of thought to her character. She developed her character.
As a director, what do you think is the reason behind the massive success of TV films in France?
The reason why TV films are so successful in France is due to the topics, as well as the environment in which the characters progress - stories that take place in suburbs, schools, you can see policemen... Those TV films give insights into social issues, you have to tackle them. There’s also good performances from actors. TV films are well exported all over the world, since Murdered for example was filmed seven years ago and is still selling in several countries, especially in Eastern Europe. This is partly due to Patricia Kaas’ fame!
Are you working on any projects at the moment? Can you tell us something about them?
Next week, I will be filming The Law of Valery with Charlotte de Turckheim in the title role.
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