After eight films, the Quebec director and actor is back in the spotlight, signing his first series, Night Laurier Gaudreault woke up. On the menu: family secrets and neuroses.
A remarkable new entry into the world of serials by a star filmmaker. After making eight films in ten years, 33-year-old Xavier Dolan is making a five-episode mini-series for Canal+. The night Laurie Gaudreau woke up. Adapting this play by Michel Marc Bouchard (Javier Dolan had already brought it to the screen Tom on the farm, by the same author), the Quebec director tackles a genre he particularly likes: the psychological thriller. The story is about three brothers who are reunited with their sister after years of separation through the death of their mother. Heavy family secrets resurface as everyone tries to survive this forced reunion.
In the cast: Xavier Dolan, Anne Dorval (his favorite actress), but also the actors of the original play: Julie Le Breteau, Patrick Hivo or Eric Bruno.
In the video, The night Laurie Gaudreau woke upthe teaser
Miss Figaro. – Why did you adapt this work?
Javier Dolan. – With this show being behind closed doors, I was curious to see what might be going on outside the walls. But I also wanted to go through the centuries and tell the life of each character. I also wanted to highlight the roles of the mother and Laurier Gaudreau, the sibling’s neighbor who we never see on stage. The series was an ideal support for practicing the psychology of each character over time.
What were your sources of inspiration?
Having a habit of creating inspired by visual cues (photos, pictures…), I embarked on this new project with the references of the series in mind. For example, Six Feet Under:r for its cynical atmosphere, but also Mare of EasttownWith Kate Winslet, for acting, or even The Night Of:An HBO series that I love for its aesthetic.
I take refuge in the 1990s because that was when there was hope
Javier Dolan
You play Elliot, the youngest of the siblings. Why this character?
I saw in Eliot a way for a thirty-year-old struggling with his drug addiction to talk about addiction through an enlightened being. Despite the pain of his battle and the darkness of his life, he remains a charismatic character who breathes hope and joy into the story.
What is left of your youth?
Although it hasn’t always been an easy time, I keep coming back to it. I take refuge in the 1990s, whether it’s music, television or cinematography, because it was a time of hope. However, there is less and less hope in today’s world.
Sibling bonds, maternal fiber… this series brings together all the themes that are dear to you, but you approach them from a different angle each time…
Life, death, siblings, family, homecoming… are such big topics that they can give rise to endless interpretations from many different perspectives or genres. In fact, it is the characters that give the stories their uniqueness. It will be difficult for me to confuse all the heroes of my films, because their lives, intentions and pains are very different.
The unspoken involves a tension that always eventually explodes or explodes
Javier Dolan
Night Laurier Gaudreault woke upalso touches on the topic of lying. What is your relationship with the truth?
I try to have direct, even face-to-face relations with the people who are important to me in life. I think you need to know how to tell things as they are to the people you love, to keep our connections and find some form of liberation there. The unspoken implies a tension that always eventually explodes or explodes. I believe that we move forward by making mistakes and over the years we learn to get closer to the truth.
What did you learn while working on this series?
It has been the most rewarding and exhilarating experience of my life as a director to date. This series was an opportunity to try to surpass myself by telling this story as best as possible in this television language. I learned a lot technically and artistically. I feel like I listened to the actors more and gave my teams more creative space. Ultimately, I feel like I made this series to please myself as a viewer.
What is your favorite stage as a director?
If I like to write, prepare, think about costumes, sets, discover shooting locations, first of all I like to shoot. Some directors thrive more in the more solitary stages, like editing, but as for me, I like the social life on set, having a family, working with them.
Has cinema filled the gaps in your life?
It allowed me to open up, talk about myself, understand things about myself and others. It’s a bit of a cliché to say, but the cinema should have played the role of therapy. It doesn’t mean that I want to do it in a deeper or more intimate way, but the film teaches you to think, to listen, to watch. He encourages empathy towards all the characters. In that, the cinema probably taught me to become a better person. There is always room for improvement, but I have personally developed through this profession.
Despite this, you recently said that you no longer feel like telling stories…
At this point I no longer want to go through all the steps required to complete the project. Everything is too slow, too heavy, too painful. I no longer want to interact with certain people, handle certain responsibilities, or deal with certain requests. I don’t care anymore. The obstacles I foresee prevent me from wanting to undertake anything.
In this context, what awaits you in 2023?
I want solitude and simplicity. I want to rest, take time for myself, to maybe find again this rush and desire to create that nothing stops and no obstacle discourages.
Source: Le Figaro
