FEATURE FILMS

The issue of dramatic art fascinates me. I have no certainties concerning it. I keep searching, trying things out. When I start writing a story, I first of all work on the dramatic structure. For me, creativity is a priority. I believe that to make people want to come to see our films, we have to be inventive. I feel that the threat facing current cinematic production is the loss of the imagination: in America, they count on special effects to make up for the weakness of the screenplay; in France, we count on the actors! Seen from the outside, my film work as a whole may not seem very coherent. This is down to the fact that I have learned by "trial and error". With my last film, I think that I have found my own music at last. The future will tell!
LE PROMENEUR D'OISEAU
I still don’t quite understand why, but ‘The Butterfly’ is incredibly popular in China. In 2009, I met 2 young producers in Beijing: Steve René (French) and Ning Ning (Chinese). The new co-production agreement between France and China had just been signed and they wanted to make a French-Chinese movie. I had visited China on a couple of occasions before, but very briefly. My knowledge of Chinese cinema was extremely limited. I did not know any Chinese actors or technicians and, more importantly, I could not speak a word of Mandarin. I should reasonably have declined the offer. However the appetite for challenge prevailed and I decided to take a leap of faith. I started learning the language and traveling in China… Initially, I wanted to do a remake of ‘The Butterfly’ (15 million people had seen the film in China… without it being ever featured in a movie theater). I quickly abandoned the idea and decided to write an original, China-specific, screenplay. Everything really began in 2010…
"MAGIQUE !"
I first got the idea to write a musical after I penned the lyrics for the end credits of my film "Le Papillon”.  I wrote the new screenplay and commenced my search for a suitable composer.  Although I had never met Cali, I enjoyed his music and had heard great things about him as a person.  The more we worked together on his ideas, the more I realized that he possessed many of the qualities found in the character "Baptiste" (one of two clowns, Antoine Dulery's partner. His audition started him on an adventure that, after many detours, finally took form in Quebec.
LE PAPILLON (2002)
I feel a lot of affection for tiny creatures (for larger ones too in fact, such as cats!) and for children. While surfing on the net one day, I came across a site devoted to butterflies. I then discovered the existence of the Isabelle, a rare butterfly whose capture is outlawed. A butterfly with a female name! I noted the word on a post-it. The bit of yellow paper would spend more than a year on my desk. At the same time, I was trying to come up with a story that would allow me to film an old man and a child...
LA VACHE ET LE PRÉSIDENT (2000)
I had just spent more than a year preparing a film that was cancelled eight weeks before the start of shooting. Depression reared its ugly head! By chance, I came across a small magazine photo of Bill Clinton with a turkey and the following caption: "To mark Thanksgiving Day, and to respect a yearly tradition launched by Abraham Lincoln, the President of the United States has reprieved a turkey!" The photo and these few words gave me the idea for this screenplay.

TOUT DOIT DISPARAÎTRE (1997)
Philippe Ledem, a screenwriter friend, had written this screenplay. I have always loved comedy and I was tempted by the idea of an "English-style" black comedy. The film is special because it marked the true screen debuts of Elie Seimoun, José Garcia, Yolande Moreau and Ophélie Winter. I have since observed that the film is either loved or (more often I think) hated outright. Since I make films to learn how to make films, this one was a good experience for me all the same.
CUISINE ET DÉPENDANCES (1992)
I had been to see the play at the Théâtre la Bruyère early in its run. A few months later, I had a call from Marc Goldstaub, assistant to Alain Poiré, one of the top producers with Gaumont whom I had met and to whom I had shown a few of my "industrial" films. "We're going to produce a film of the play, there's no screenplay yet but the shoot will last no longer than six weeks, in the studio. Are you interested?" A few days later, I met the writers, Agnès Jaoui and Jean-Pierre Bacri.
L’ARBRE SOUS LA MER (1985)
I had started adapting the book for a "normal" production budget. When I was unable to find a producer (and so financing), I had to revise the script at least ten times in order to make it economically viable. Bernard Lutic, an excellent director of photography (killed since in a helicopter accident while scouting for locations), was a huge help. We made the film with three tiny spotlights, in other words virtually without lighting. The film won the Best Photography Prize at the San Sebastian Film Festival.