GALO: Though it certainly isn’t a silent film, dialogue is sparse throughout; it is more about the emotions and the expressions that the characters build upon scene after scene. Why did you decide to focus the story on the passions, the furtive looks, and the mysteries behind the two characters – were you intentionally leaving things unsaid?

JB: Because I believe that cinema is the ideal means to express things that we feel with our guts but cannot explain. And with these specific actors that I worked with, it was marvelous because they were perfectly suited to pull this off. [A few seconds of silence pass by until Bonnell speaks again.] I think I chose to become a filmmaker specifically for this.

GALO: There is quite a bit of classical music in the film. What were you trying to emphasize or have the audience focus on when using such works?

JB: Yes, actually it was Vivaldi and Verdi. Their music has such a timeless and universal character to it that it allows the story to become larger than what it could seem to be. It highlights, or underscores, the fact that the story is almost beyond time; it’s timeless.

GALO: Emmanuelle, when you first read the screenplay for the role of Alix, what was your initial reaction to it? In other words, what captivated you about her character – could you relate to her seeing she was an actress as well?

Emmanuelle Devos: You know…one doesn’t really need to feel close to the character as is, to want to be attached to the project. I don’t need to see personal or biographical elements of myself in the character that I read of. What matters most to me is to work with a filmmaker that I like and feel that I believe in what he wants to do, and [to feel that] I like his words and his approach. So when I read something that is well-written, it becomes familiar by definition. When I read the words that are written in a way I like, they become my words, even though they don’t necessarily resemble any words I would use.

GALO: And what would you say was the most difficult aspect of Alix’s personality or emotion to portray?

ED: Difficult as such no. It was very strong emotionally and hence very tiring, but I wouldn’t define it as difficult.

GALO: Can you speak a little bit about how it was to work alongside Gabriel Byrne?

ED: It was interesting. He had an approach to the part where he lived it all the time, and he was suffering a lot. He said that he can’t imagine anybody else play that part but him.

GALO: Surprisingly, the film isn’t entirely in French but a good portion of it is in English. Why did you decide to make the film bilingual, even though it takes place in France and both characters speak French (though Douglas does say at one point that “he wishes he could forget”).

JB: Well, initially it was the idea that because they [the characters] were from different countries, it would be hard for them to have a life together, to find each other long-term. But as we were working with that, I found out that using English allowed a lot more freedom and it was like, you know, for an actor, you have this compositional device and it allowed the character [of Alix] to become a lot more daring, and find out her own freedom and actually find herself.

GALO: Without giving away the film or the ending, would you say that the final scenes or rather moments carry a hopeful allusion to them?

At this point in the interview, Bonnell smiled and his eyes lit up (as did Devos’) whilst he provided me with a one-word answer, as if instructing us, the viewers, to make what we like of the ending, giving us the key (with a subtle hint toward the atmosphere) to decide what happens next…

JB: Yes.

ED: Yes, indeed [laughter].

GALO: Lastly, what are your professional plans after the festival?

JB and ED: Vacation…professionally [laughter].

“Just A Sigh” premiered at the Tribeca Film Festival in New York City on April 18.

Featured image: Gabriel Byrne stars as Douglas, alongside Emmanuelle Devos who stars as Alix, in the French dramedy, “Just A Sigh.” Photo Credit: Céline Nieszawer.

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