Thirty-something Paula has been dumped by her boyfriend after ten years together. Refusing to accept the role of the passive victim, the embittered woman suddenly finds herself on the street. Her odyssey through Paris to recapture her independence and composure – a journey filled with bizarre encounters – is just beginning. An enchanting drama with comedic touches, the film received the Caméra d’Or at this year’s Cannes festival.
Someplace between Barbara Loden’s Wanda, a lone gem of 1970s American cinema, and Noah Baumbach’s Frances Ha, which rippled the sometimes stagnant and brooding waters of independent film a few years ago, you’ll find Montparnasse Bienvenue. “I used to be everything to him, now I am nothing,” confides the title character, a thirty-year-old woman on the brink of a nervous breakdown after suddenly being dumped by her boyfriend, a worldly-wise photographer. Her odyssey through daytime and nighttime Paris is just beginning: a journey to rediscover the integrity of her soul, her independence and, above all, her peace of mind. Léonor Serraille, whose enchanting drama with comedic elements competed with twenty-five films to win the Caméra d’Or at Cannes this year, drew on the inestimable assistance of actress Laetitia Dosch to bring us unpredictable, brash, wounded, dazzling and open-hearted Paula, a fascinating woman in a fascinating city.
Karel Och
97 min / Color, DCP
Director Léonor Serraille
/ Screenplay Léonor Serraille
/ Dir. of Photography Émilie Noblet
/ Music Julie Roué
/ Editor Clémence Carré
/ Art Director Valérie Valéro
/ Producer Sandra Da Fonseca
/ Production Blue Monday Productions
/ Cast Laetitia Dosch, Grégoire Monsaingeon, Souleymane Seye Ndiaye
/ Sales Be For Films
/ Distributor Artcam Films
Léonor Seraille (b. 1986) studied screenwriting at the celebrated Paris film school La Fémis (2009-13). She worked as a screenwriter on short films including Tang Meng (2013, dir. Linbo Wang) and Lil’ Sister (2013, dir. Sonia Franco). Her first film as a director, the mid-length drama Body (2016), screened at the Brive FF, and her debut feature film Montparnasse Bienvenue won the Caméra d’Or at this year’s Cannes festival.
Be For Films
23 Rue Fourcroy, 75017, Paris
France
Phone: +33 614 343 755
E-mail: [email protected]
Artcam Films
Rašínovo nábřeží 6, 128 00, Praha 2
Czech Republic
Phone: +420 221 411 619
Fax: +420 221 411 699
E-mail: [email protected]
Sylvie Leray
Distributor, Producer
Justine Gustin
Sales Agent
First-hand brews throughout the year.
Be among the first to learn about upcoming events and other news. We only send the newsletter when we have something to say.
