March Keller. “My first shoot in France, despite May 1968 and the fact that things were happening in Paris, I remember the good manners, the lightness”

It is surrounded by works whose works he often reads (Robert Walser, Pablo Neruda, Friedrich Hölderlin, Charlotte Delbo…), which Mart Keller agreed to discuss. Scenes from my life. In this autobiographical journey, the woman who was the partner of Al Pacino and Dustin Hoffman tells about her experiences in dance, theater, cinema, opera; all that made him a versatile artist.

Madame Figaro . – Why this autobiography?
Martha Keller. – For my granddaughters who wanted to read my memoirs, and also because I wanted to tell the younger generations that sometimes you have to hang in there to get there. And Elizabeth Samaman (publishing agent, editor’s note) was very convincing. But there is no question of touching on my personal life. The book is called Scenes from my life and no my life, and if Philip de Broca and Al Pacino are present, then it is only from a professional point of view. I talk about it the same way I talk about Dustin Hoffman, who I became friends with.

Do you prefer shade to light?
I’m someone you don’t see, who doesn’t go out, and if I’ve made money from my job, then I can say no. ” to the things I don’t want to do and stay free. I love to work and I work non-stop, that’s all I need. My goal is to be able to continue riding the subway with complete peace of mind… I agreed to write this book, but now I feel a little ashamed. Interest me simply because I know it, while what I like to learn from others is things that I don’t know.

What were your most memorable experiences?
They are often associated with first timers. Devil by the tail By Philip de Broca, for example, was a real culture shock. It was my first shoot in France, and despite May 1968 and the fact that something was happening in Paris, I remember the good manners, the lightness… I discovered that you can have fun while working seriously. For Marathon man (1976), same thing. I didn’t speak any more English than I spoke French at the time Devil with a tail, it was my first American film, and I was fascinated by this different approach. It was very sporty, we were shooting sixteen hours a day, the smallest detail was carefully checked and rechecked. Finally, Cassandra:, by Michael Jarrell, at the Théâtre du Châtelet (1994), was a challenge because it was a utopia, I was alone on stage with Christa Wolff’s text and challenging music. I had worked with Stravinsky or Honegger, but there was no melody, no points of reference, the intellect was much more than the emotional, whereas my comfort zone is tears or a smile. But we finally got there. Winning this bet with myself was one of those experiences that made me want to keep going, and I keep going.

Scenes from my life By Mart Keller, Éditions Les Presses de la Cité, 232 pages, €22.