[press conference for
Mother and Son (2022) at the 2022 Cannes Film Festival] After
Montparnasse Bienvenüe (2017) I was hesitating between several subjects and my producer said, "Well, do your second film as if it was your last," and this brought me back to the story I've been thinking about for 18 years, this story of a family - the family of the man who loves me. I've always wanted to write about this - I hadn't dared so far. And this brought me back to some key questions about the family and I needed to untangle all these questions I had in my mind. I also wanted to sublimate the subject. I embarked on writing the film, without really knowing where I was going. But I know I wanted to spend some time with these characters. I wanted above all to be a spectator. I wanted the film to come into being. I felt it was a kind of destiny I hadn't yet sorted out.
