The route of two spoiled kids, brothers Paul and Samuel Kircher, who were nominated in the same category for Cesar.

Dotted with family dynasties, the great history of cinema has often given pride of place to members of the same lineage. If we think of the Cohen brothers of the USA, France is not left out with Jalil and Janis Lespert or even Maiven and Isilde Le Besco. But for Cesar to see two brothers nominated in the same category is simply unprecedented. The event, which is in its 49th year this year, has seen Samuel and Paul Kircher both selected to win the Best Male Appearance statuette respectively. Last summer And Animal kingdom.

Children of the ball

One has short hair, the other has a long mane. Despite sharing a last name, they don’t look alike, and their roles on the big screen have nothing to do with each other. Paul Kircher, 22, has four films under his belt and is already nominated for Best Actor in 2023. High school student By Christophe Honoré. His brother Samuel, 19, has only appeared in one film so far. Last summer By Catherine Braille. Despite their talents, which are obvious to anyone who has seen their films, we can’t talk about the Kirchers without mentioning their parents, also actors. Their mother, Irene Jacob, won the best actress award at the 1991 Cannes Film Festival. The Double Life of Veronique and Jerome Kircher studied at the National Conservatory of Dramatic Arts in the mid-1980s and was nominated four times for the Moliere, while appearing in several films, including: Long engagement Sunday And Aries family.

Paul, the most experienced

Hitting the heights at an early age, the Kircher brothers weren’t necessarily destined to become the actors we know today. Thus, Paul initially studied economics and geography at the University of Paris-Cite while attending summer theater courses when he was approached in 2019 to play one of the main characters. Did you catch a fish?, a romantic comedy. A small role in the series follows Captain Marlowe In 2020 and then next year, a real baptism of fire with a movie High school student. He plays a young man who has just lost his father and, fearing his homosexuality, feels damaged, plunged into a lethargy that will finally be resolved thanks to the support of his brother (Vincent Lacoste) and mother (Juliette Binoche). .

Then it explodes inside Animal kingdom, directed by Thomas Keighley, premiered at the Cannes Film Festival and was released last October. She portrays Emile, a teenager somewhat uncomfortable in her own skin who goes to live in the countryside with her father (Romain Duris) after her mother suffers from a disease that turns people into half-human hybrid creatures. , in half. animals. Father and son go in search of the latter, who has disappeared (like a little déjà vu?), but Emil, in turn, will gradually turn into… a wild beast. Without equal, his deliberately clumsy performance mixed with an almost bare-bones swagger has earned him rave reviews, each more laudatory than the last.

Samuel, resourceful

The youngest Kircher appeared to play Last summer a bit random. The role, originally intended for his brother Paul, was then offered to him; High school studentBy Christophe Honoré and Animal kingdom, by Thomas Cayley. He was no longer available to play Catherine Breilla’s film, which was going to be shot at the same time,” he says. world , before clarifying. “So Catherine took over the casting, but she couldn’t find anyone else. In the spring she returned to Paul again, he absolutely cared for her. It was then that he suggested that he turn to me. Shootings were inevitable. Along with passing the bachelor’s degree, I also discovered the tests.” Such a simple agreement. Judging by the director’s requirements 36 Little girl, it is not so. The praise received reflects a genuine discovery. In the film, we follow Anna, a lawyer played by Lea Drucker, who falls under the spell of her stepson Theo, a master of the art of talent. Of these incestuous relationships, we focus particularly on the young Samuel Kircher, which is surprisingly authentic.

Hello Caesar!

When Cesar Academy revealed the nominations on January 24th, we’re pretty sure the Kircher family must have been in attendance. It’s a first for two brothers to be nominated in the same category, especially early in their careers. We are talking here about a small revolution on the scale of French cinema. If we had to find a common denominator for them, we would turn to the tricked, but no less proven phrase “born actors”. What unites their games is an immense naturalness, but also a playfulness that is nested in appearance as much as in posture. Disarmingly honest, the Kirchers seem to be well and truly on their way to a great journey in the 7th art.