Generous, sensitive, talented: tributes multiplied on Monday following the announcement of the death of filmmaker Jean-Marc Vallée, both here in Quebec, where CRAZY was erected to the rank of cinema classic, than in Hollywood, where he had managed to make his marks in recent years.
Pierre Even, who co-produced CRAZY, believes that he will be remembered as one of those, along with Denis Villeneuve, who paved the way for other Quebec directors in the United States.
“The American agents, the big studios, the producers called us after CRAZY to find out who was going to be the next Jean-Marc Vallée. They knew it was coming from Quebec. There really was a competition. And Jean-Marc contributed a lot to that, because he was very generous with his time towards young directors, ”remembers Pierre Even, in shock after learning of the sudden death of his accomplice.
Together, they will have given birth to CRAZY in 2005, but also Café de Flore in 2011. Two feature films in which music played a leading role. A great music lover, Jean-Marc Vallée even wrote his scripts while thinking of the song that would accompany the film. A recognizable style, which will continue to inspire designers from here and elsewhere, predicts Pierre Even.
“Jean-Marc is a swarm of designers who worked with him and learned a lot from him,” he emphasizes. In 10-15 years, there are still people who will say that they worked with Jean-Marc Vallée. He was a very generous person, very humble. He really cared about others, and it showed in his films. This will stay and I will miss it. “
“Great sensitivity”
Costume designer Ginette Magny is one of those people who grew up alongside Jean-Marc Vallée, first in the advertising industry, then on the sets of CRAZY and of Café de Flore. Terrified by this sudden and tragic departure, she will eternally admire the talent of the filmmaker, he who exuded a sort of natural authority and respect on the sets.
“We know that, often, on sets, the director needs to raise his voice to have silence. But not Jean-Marc. He was ordering unwittingly. It was such a pleasure to work with him! He is someone who has brought a lot to the cinema because of his great sensitivity, ”adds Ginette Magny, her throat tied.
The actor Pierre-Luc Brillant also has only good words for Jean-Marc Vallée, who directed him in CRAZY Still early in his career at the time, Pierre-Luc Brillant played Raymond, the bum of the family, the executioner of Zachary (Marc-André Grondin). A demanding role for the young actor he was, but which he speaks of today as “the experience of a lifetime”.
“He’s the best director of actors I’ve ever known. And when we say good acting director, that doesn’t mean someone who talks all the time. On the contrary. With just one word, one image, he was able to make us understand exactly what he wanted, ”continues Pierre-Luc Brillant, who was still in contact with Jean-Marc Vallée, astonished.
Because despite his international success, the director had remained attached to Quebec and organized a meeting of the film crew every five years. CRAZY A modesty that Pierre-Luc Brillant praises today, even if this is not the first qualifier that came to his mind when he met the director for the first time almost twenty years ago.
“When he ‘briefed’ me on the character, he told me it would be a movie that was going to make history. I hadn’t found him to be a very modest director. But looking back, I know it wasn’t vanity. He only believed in his project, he was passionate. As soon as we started shooting, we knew straight away that we were playing in a great film, ”recalls the actor, his voice filled with emotion.
“He had even spent his personal money to have the soundtrack he wanted for CRAZY He was passionate about it, and he was stubborn, ”continues screenwriter Chantal Cadieux, ex-wife of Jean-Marc Vallée and mother of her two children, for whom the news had the effect of a bomb.
From all over the world
Demanding and perfectionist, the filmmaker was indeed determined to make a masterpiece that would touch a large audience and make an impression. It was a successful bet in the end.
“Jean-Marc put immense pressure on himself CRAZY He said it was going to be his last movie. And I told him that he was far too talented for this to be his last film, ”Pierre Even recounts with nostalgia.
In the end, the producer was right. Jean-Marc Vallée continued to tour in the United States. With Dallas Buyers Club in 2013, he became the first Quebec director to be nominated for the Oscar for best film. Will follow Wild, which will also be critically acclaimed, and the multi-award-winning series Big Little Lies.
” My heart is broken. My friend. I love you ”, wrote on Twitter Reese Witherspoon, one of his favorite actresses in Hollywood, after learning of the death of the director of 58 years.
“A cinematographic force and a true artist who changed my life with a beautiful film entitled Dallas Buyers Club ”, a for his part reacted actor Jared Leto.
On social networks and in the media around the world, a wave of tributes swept through the day. That of Denis Villeneuve was certainly one of the most felt, he who loses not only one of his rare compatriots in Hollywood, but also a friend.
In an interview with Radio-Canada, Michel Côté paid a touching tribute to the man who probably offered him one of the greatest roles of his career in CRAZY
“He’s a great director. It’s a huge loss, not only for Quebec cinema, but for international cinema, ”he said, repressing his sobs.