Toni with family | “A declaration of love to mothers and women”

French actress Camille Cottin (Andréa from the series Call my agent) plays Toni, a single mother of five teenagers, in search of meaning, in the film Toni with family by Nathan Ambrosioni (Paper flags) which has just been released in theaters in Quebec. We spoke to her while she is at the Venice Film Festival, where she paid tribute to Sigourney Weaver on Wednesday, and where she stars in Three friends by Emmanuel Mouret, a film presented in competition. Interview.

This mother of five teenagers in Toni with familyis she a superheroine?

This is my Marvel superhero movie, because raising five children alone is a superpower. I love to approach it like that. It’s such a beautiful tribute to women, to mothers, to their strength, their constancy, their way of taking care of others, of always being attentive. This film is a very beautiful declaration of love to mothers and women in general.

I have two children, and my 14-year-old son, when he saw the film, said to me: “This makes me want to be nice to you!” I am not a single mother, but the film allows you to put yourself in that mother’s shoes.

Family is a place of ups and downs. Is it ego management, rivalry and constant negotiation?

When there are several children, between brothers and sisters, there are arguments, alliances, power struggles, and it can sometimes be very cruel when there is a lot of love. I have four brothers and sisters, I come from a blended family, so when I read Nathan Ambrosioni’s script, I found my childhood again. At home, everyone was talking at the same time, there was noise all the time.

When friends came to the house, they would say to me: “But how do you do it? Do you get along?” Everyone is used to it, but when you come from outside, it’s disconcerting. Nathan has very well transcribed this family atmosphere in the film.

Is this film also a reflection on motherhood?

Director Nathan Ambrosioni wanted to reflect on the obsolete side of motherhood. Women are asked to make it a priority, then the children go away and it’s hard to reinvent yourself after devoting your life to your children. Toni wants to go to university and open up the field of possibilities, but it’s not easy.

The family is an institution and it is complicated to live up to the myth of the mother, we expect a lot from her. Raising a child alone is so much responsibility and questioning. It is hard not to have an adult alter ego in front of you with whom you can think, unwind. It is psychologically trying.

Are you going to meet Nathan Ambrosioni again this fall?

Yes. I love him, he is so inspiring and he has a sensitivity that is unique. And I like to get into his head and his heart. I will be shooting with him in November, I am very excited, it will be with Juliette Armanet and Monia Chokri. I am a big fan of Monia Chokri, I loved her film Simple as Sylvain.

You studied English. In case your acting career didn’t work out?

Yes, I did a Masters in English. My parents wanted me to be an actress, but they asked me, while I was at drama school, to do some studies, so that I had a plan B. Since we lived in London when I was a teenager, I chose English. I loved it because we did a lot of history and English and American literature, and I went on to do a Masters.

When I finished my drama classes, I had to find a job, and I was an English teacher for three or four years, while doing small roles. My students saw me in a TV advert for a sofa and I was also their teacher, it wasn’t easy to get respect! And I also did an advert for a Japanese telephone with Brad Pitt, and Wes Anderson directed the advert!

On Wednesday you paid tribute to Sigourney Weaver who received the Golden Lion for her entire career.

There is a before and after Sigourney Weaver in cinema. She was able to assert herself and revolutionize the codes by playing, in a leading female role, a science fiction film, Alien. She was the first woman to do that. She is inspiring, she goes out of her comfort zone, she is elusive.

I was talking to her and she’s going to play Prospero in The storm Shakespeare. So she’s going to play a man, in London, and she’s learning her lines! She’s amazing! She’s a great lady. And she’s the complete opposite of the role she played in the series. Call my agentShe never throws tantrums and she is super professional.

Are you looking forward to seeing your character Andrea Martel again?Call my agentin a film that will be shot in 2025?

I’m always happy to see Andrea again. She’s volcanic, intelligent, surprising, a free spirit, and it’s Fanny Herrero (screenwriter of the series) who writes the film. I really like her writing style, and I can’t wait to see all the friends and actors from the series again.

Toni with family is presented in the room.