Some actors and production staff tell details of the new film that finally opens in Ecuador.
With The French Chronicle (The French Dispatch), American filmmaker Wes Anderson offers a love letter to journalists. The film is set in the newsroom of an American magazine in a fictional 20th-century French city, and brings to life a collection of stories published in The French Chronicle, the magazine in question.
Written and directed by Anderson, the film stars a large group of prominent actors, including: Benicio del Toro, Frances McDormand, Jeffrey Wright, Adrien Brody, Tilda Swinton, Timothée Chalamet, Léa Seydoux, Owen Wilson, Bill Murray, Liev Schreiber, Elisabeth Moss, Edward Norton, Willem Dafoe, Saoirse Ronan, Anjelica Huston.
It’s about the tenth film by the acclaimed American director that will hit theaters on November 11. The producer is also known for his repeated collaboration with the actors and actresses who make up the stellar casts of his films and The French Chronicle is no exception.
The way Wes Anderson approaches the creation of his films is unique. Find a city or town that will serve as a home base where everything and everyone is within walking distance – be it on foot, by bike, or golf cart – and where the cast and crew can live and work in community. “Working with Wes is embarking on an adventure that will change your life”says veteran cinematographer Robert Yeoman, who has worked with Anderson on other films. “Whether it’s sailing off the coast of Italy by boat, traveling on an old train through India, or traveling down a narrow street in Angoulême, it is a true experience in your life that is not limited to your time on set. Your attention is completely absorbed by the film. “
Longtime collaborator Jason Schwartzman, who co-wrote the story with Anderson and Roman Coppola and plays the magazine’s cartoonist, remarks: “Working on these things is a real adventure.”
“From Trip to Darjeeling ”As Jeremy Dawson tells six-time Wes producer, “we started working without trailers for the actors, trying to have as few trailers as possible, trying to find a place that somehow functions simultaneously as a studio and a location. I think that has a lot of psychological benefits, because we all really feel like we are living in the movie. So stop The French Chronicle we found Angoulême”.
“Being in a Wes movie is a very familiar experience,” says Bob Balaban, another actor who repeats with Wes for the fourth time. “We eat together. There is not like a line there in the distance where you sit and you have to wait and it is cold and the food is bad. He is friendly, and Wes is like a strong father, a very kind, understanding and very patient father. You never want to go home and you’re happy shooting at four in the morning, it just doesn’t matter. “
While veteran actor Liev Schreiber recalls that “the first night I arrived in Angoulême, Wes invited me to what I think was called the ‘company dinner’. First they told me to come to my room in this quaint tiny ‘bed and breakfast’ French. And as I entered, I found these beautiful Scottish terry slippers. I put them on… and they were wonderful, but I wasn’t quite sure if everyone else would wear them. However, when we got down, they were all there in their Scottish slippers, having a cocktail and waiting for our big dinner ”.
“Almost all of us stayed in the same hotel”, describe Benicio, the bull, a newcomer in the world of Wes Anderson, “and when I went to dinner, there were all these celebrities and actors that I admire. So it was great, like being at the Golden Globes without the pressure, the speeches or the cameras. ” Stephen Park, another newcomer to the cast, adds: “I loved our dinners after shooting, all together at the hotel where we were staying. One incredible actor after another would arrive and we would all get together for dinner telling anecdotes of the day. It was all so relaxed and fun, with so many amazing stories! “.
The actress Tilda Swinton, who participated in four feature films directed by Anderson, adds about working on his films. “It is always a universe of pleasure and amazing dedication and creativity. A group of old friends come from all over the world to meet in all the departments, this time in a French city in the province, along with numerous new colleagues, without forgetting the participation, enthusiastic and unfailingly friendly of the extras, of almost everyone. the citizens of Angoulême… we pinched each other every day ”.
Adrien Brody is another regular on Anderson’s cast. “I love the closeness and intimacy of the work experience Wes creates. We are a company, a true choral cast, and that fascinates me ”.
Owen Wilson, who in addition to being a colleague from Wes’ university is, after Bill Murray, his greatest collaborator, he adds: “I don’t know why there aren’t more people trying to do it this way.”
The French Chronicle opens in theaters available in the country on November 11.
Paul is a talented author and journalist with a passion for entertainment and general news. He currently works as a writer at the 247 News Agency, where he has established herself as a respected voice in the industry.
