Film cast © AFP
UN CERTAIN REGARD RENDEZ-VOUS – Sarah Prefers to Run by Chloé Robichaud
With a short film In Competition last year and a full-length movie in Un Certain Regard this year, Chloé Robichaud is pressing forward step by step at Cannes. Her character, Sarah, is more of a middle-distance runner. To the point of leaving her neighbourhood for a place in the best university athletics club in Montréal, despite her financial problems.
Tell us how your film came about.
As a child, I used to dream of being a runner. That dream soon gave way to one about being a film director. At university, I took part in a précis competition organised by a local newspaper where I felt a strong desire to write about running. Later on, I decided that my first full-length movie would be based on this précis. The story of Sarah Prefers to Run developed over time but the idea of talking about a character that only lives for her passion wouldn’t leave me alone..
Do you have a memory, an anecdote from the shoot?
I’ll always remember the first day of filming. Straight away I felt so moved and gratified. I had brought the whole cast and crew together to say a few words before the first “action”. And a number of us lost all our composure and had tears well up in our eyes.
What kind of cinema influences you?
I like movies built around dialogues, like Woody Allen’s films sometimes are. I also admire the work of Wes Anderson. I like his attention to the image, the art direction, and his unique tone. I tend to be absorbed by movies that are thoughtful, original and above all human. Lynn Ramsay, Denys Arcand, Andrea Arnold, are influences, to name but a few.
Can you tell us about your next project?
I’m putting the finishing touches to the script of my second full-length movie, a project entitled Pays, that I’d like to film in 2014. The movie is about three women of different generations who get involved in a political conflict about land ownership. The three women forge an unlikely friendship.
SCREENINGS
Tuesday 21 May / Debussy Theatre / 11.00am
Thursday 23 May / Debussy Theatre / 10.00pm
