Although the series Before the crash, which he was writing with Kim Lévesque-Lizotte, was delayed for a year, Éric Bruneau did not want to stop writing. It was then that Louis Morissette offered him to work with Marie-Hélène Lebeau-Taschereau, who had just finished writing the first season of the anthology series. Turn with… Kim Lévesque-Lizotte, who can also be found as a screenwriter, with Anderson Jean, in the credits of Turn. Double fault. Directed by Rafaël Ouellet, who took over from Catherine Therrien, the series features Éric Bruneau in the shoes of a tennis player, Charles Rivard.
“The series talks a lot about tennis, but I wanted to talk about transmission, about a family, confides Éric Bruneau, met during a press briefing following the presentation of the first two of the eight episodes of Turn. Double fault. I’ve seen a lot of athletes who have struggled with performance management and performance anxiety. I also wanted to talk about the expiration date of the athlete. It’s something that touches me, it could have been an actor. You do one thing all your life and, at a certain age, your body no longer allows you to do it. »
There are several parallels to be drawn between the first and second seasons of the KOTV-produced series. Like Frédérique Lessard (Charlotte Aubin), a newly retired short track speed skater, whose journey we followed in Turn, Charles Rivard (Éric Bruneau) lives only for sport, only has a high school diploma, likes to raise his elbow, smoke a joint or powder his nose to decompress. However, unlike Frédérique, Charles is not an Olympic champion.
“He has few years left to perform,” explains Marie-Hélène Lebeau-Taschereau. For us, it was interesting to look at someone who had potential, but who never lived up to expectations. Often in sports plots, we follow a winner or the one just below; there is someone who is 187e in the world, but leads an interesting life. What makes him continue is that he believes in himself, he hopes that one day it will unlock. »
I spoke to athletes who told me that there were many parents who told their children that their victories were their victories.
“As Charles said at the start, at the motel in Jonquière, even when he is pocket, his job is better than many jobs, recalls Rafaël Ouellet, who was inspired by the film Moneyball, by Bennett Miller, for the aesthetics of the series. We had the chance to work with real players, those who stand in for Eric or those of his opponents; in there, there are those who have ranked thousandth in the world and who live from it. We are going to talk about it in a podcast who will support the series. »
“We were inspired a lot by a documentary on Mardy Fish [Untold : Breaking Point, sur Netflix], an American tennis player who played in the 2000s, remembers the interpreter of Charles, who trained with coach Sylvain Bruneau. At one point Fish was 150e in the world and he managed to make it into the top 10, but anxiety took hold of him and he was no longer able to continue performing. I think it happens to everyone, this kind of desire to be at your best and to push your abilities. It joins themes that were in Before the crash. »
A family matter
Besides the fact of never having been beyond the top 50, the great drama of Charles is that his passion for tennis is not his, but that of his mother, the ex-player tennis player Françoise Lavoie (Sylvie Léonard). Demanding, rigid, miles away from the benevolent father of Frédérique, Sylvain (Sylvain Marcel), Françoise had to give up her career to give birth to her eldest son, Hubert (Karl Farah), whose gambling debts risk compromising the future. the transport company he manages with his father, Claude (Denis Marchand), and, by extension, Charles’ career.
“There is something twisted in their relationship. She says she chose Charles because he had more potential, but she sure resents the eldest son, who “scrapped” his career. Charles is like an extension of herself. Françoise loves her sons, but she doesn’t know how to love them,” thinks Marie-Hélène Lebeau-Taschereau.
“I spoke to athletes who told me that there were many parents who told their children that their victories were their victories. When the parent begins to see his dream in that of his child, which is something normal — myself, I feel it when I see that my daughter is good at something — but how far do you push there- inside ? If my mother had told me, your roles are my roles, I don’t think I could have been an actor, it would have been too much pressure, ”admits Éric Bruneau.
On the court of the big ones
Having been able to convince Sylvain Carrier (Louis Morissette, also executive producer, screenwriter and script-editor) to become his coach, despite the fact that he had promised his wife (Véronique Beaudet) to be more present at home, Charles will be able to shine in prestigious tournaments. And thanks to the Association of Tennis Professionals, the team of Turn. Double fault was able to film during the Rogers Cup, which gives rise to scenes that keep the spectator in suspense.
“Nobody in the stands was created digitally, swears Rafaël Ouellet. Either the spectators are really in the shot, or we composed from the tournament when the stadium was full, among other things during the Kyrgios match and the last match of Auger-Aliassime. We had seven minutes to shoot between games. There was really atmosphere for us. It was very exhilarating. »
The director says that after the passage of the professional players, he asked the public to shout the name of the character of Éric Bruneau: “Afterwards, we had the Jarry stadium for us, which became like our studio. We had access to all training equipment facilities. We thought we would be restricted in our movements, but there was nobody, and we weren’t disturbing. It was the dream! »