Workshop with Virginie Efira
In Bed With Victoria, a French film directed by Justine Triet, was shown on the second day of the Festival. The film was presented by actress Virginie Efira, who held a workshop for students and Festival guests.
Virginie analyzed the relationship between director and actor and stressed that it was based on trust, that you were allowed to make mistakes, but that Justine Triet did not allow actors to feel comfortable. She described the director’s method of filmmaking as “creating chaos”.
Talking about the character of Victoria, she said that she was strong, complex, and not fitting into the stereotypes of female characters, seeing romantic relationships as negotiation. While preparing for the film, the only role model she was given by the director was the film Opening Night by John Cassavetes starring Gena Rowlands. Eventually, all they took from the film was a blue dress and the way the leading character holds her cigarette.
Answering the question whether Victoria, the lead character, was victorious, she said: “There is a possibility, but a violence of human relationships is there – no one wins or loses.” The film is a fiction and it has a classic narrative structure, so Virginie found it strange that the leading role was labeled a superhero of the modern times.
Since her character in the film is a lawyer, she prepared for the role by watching trial films and talking to lawyers. However, they never tried to be realistic and the director created situations of disturbance. She said that Justine worked with numerous takes, changed elements, and even added new characters to scenes during filming.
After the talk about In Bed With Victoria, Virginie reflected on her work on Paul Verhoeven’s film Elle, emphasizing that the director, although in older age, was still subversive. She was on the set for around ten days, but the experience was completely different from the one working with Justine, since Verhoeven never makes more than two-three takes.
