Her name is Villeneuve. Salome Villeneuve. She will make her debut this Thursday in the world of cinema by presenting a very first short film at the Venice Film Festival. IIIa twelve-minute fiction film, was selected for the selection of short films in the Orizzonti section, an official section of the festival, somewhat the equivalent of Un certain regard at the Cannes Film Festival.
Posted at 8:00 a.m.
The young woman, aged 26, will thus be attending this festival for the very first time, which already enjoys an excellent reputation in her family. The international career of his father, Denis, really took off here with Fires. Last year, the presentation of Dunes at the Sala Grande was a memorable event.
“It’s a huge surprise and an incredible honor because, as I’ve been told, the Mostra is a magnificent celebration of cinema. The idea that my film be presented in this context touches me deeply”, launched the director during an interview granted to The Press.
No certainty
Apart from the films made as part of his training at Concordia University, III constitutes the real baptism of a filmmaker for whom, even today, nothing is a matter of certainty. Having been immersed in the world of cinema all her life, moved from childhood by a desire to direct and tell stories when she saw her father – of whom she had a bit of an image of the adventurer who had gone to capture images – to realize films, Salomé Villeneuve nevertheless took a while before affirming her vocation.
PHOTO PROVIDED BY METAFILMS
A scene from IIIa short film written and directed by Salomé Villeneuve
“It happened when the time came to make a choice for my university studies,” she explains. I felt that if I didn’t give myself the chance to try directing, I would always regret it. However, I had the impression that everything had to be done and that my own relationship to cinema had to be defined. I then felt the need to create my own background. I started watching all the films that came to hand and took a deep interest in this medium. »
Just bearing the name of one of the world’s most revered filmmakers obviously adds an extra dimension to the case. Salomé Villeneuve is well aware of this.
“It can sometimes be difficult to dissociate my own identity from the pressure which, perhaps, will come from the expectations that will be projected on me. As far as I can remember, I have always been very demanding with myself, very perfectionist. I always find it difficult to present my work. At the same time, it forces me to free myself from the need to please, because I already know that we will have expectations that I may not be able to meet. »
A discreet and benevolent look
Denis Villeneuve, who is currently filming Dunes 2 in Budapest, looks at the work of her eldest daughter with a look that, according to her, remains discreet and benevolent.
“I feel that it makes him very happy, confides the director, but he does his best not to demonstrate it too much and not to put pressure on me. But I know it affects him. Cinema is almost a religion for us and he devotes his whole life to it. Also, as his projects occupy him a lot, I still have free rein to explore as I please. »
And where does III, this film where three children from the same family face a conflict during a fishing trip?
“The bond that I maintain with my two youngest brothers, to whom I am very close, made me want to explore this faculty that children have of viscerally loving and hating. And how we can come to resolve violent disagreements. Everything about childhood fascinates me. »
III is presented Thursday at the 79e Venice Film Festival, as part of a program dedicated to short films selected in the Orizzonti section.