Gallant Indies

“It’s a music film that does not talk about music. I have been making music films for ages now, films about music; my intention is to make music the subject of my film work. Some directors adapt novels; in my case, it is musical pieces. Even though it may seem strange: I do not adapt them as fiction. I want to show the artists at work and establish a connection between life and work. When Clément Cogitore and I spoke for the first time, I was amazed at the clarity of his statements and his scenic device, which, I think, strictly speaking, have more to do with a contemporary artist’s proposal than with a stage director’s—especially in a rather conservative place like the Opéra de Paris. Of course, I was enthralled right away. And I felt almost instantly, as well, that the group of dancers he invited on stage were to be at the heart of this enterprise, in such a way that the subject of the documentary was aimed at depicting the way these dancers would look at this institution and the way they would approach it, live it, experience it.”