Festival highlights

This weekend’s VCU French Film Festival provided
moviegoers with hours of entertainment, but it was
also the events that took place off-screen that truly
enhanced the entire experience. From post-screening
discussions with the directors and actors themselves
for many of the films to allowing attendees to hobnob
with one another over spirits and finger-foods, the
world-renowned event pulled out all the stops.

Festival Reception

Attendees of the French Film Festival took a short
hiatus from their movie-viewing to partake in the
event’s official reception, which was held Saturday at
the Renaissance Conference Center on West Broad
Street.

Directors, professors, students and French-film
enthusiasts mingled over wine and hors d’oeuvres
while discussing a plethora of topics. Conversations,
heard in French as often as in English, meandered
from the movies that had just been seen to politics.
Mayor Douglas Wilder was also in attendance and,
although he had not seen any films at that point, had
praiseworthy words for the festival itself.

“It embellishes Richmond,” Wilder said when asked
what effect events such as the French Film Festival
have on the city. Wilder also thinks outside perception
of Richmond is often misconstrued, and programs like
the French Film Festival are stepping-stones to the
improvement of that image.

‘La Vérité ou presque’ Q&A
with Director Sam Karmann

Director Sam Karmann looked out to the crowded
audience after viewing his third directorial debut, “La
Vérité ou Presque,” and admitted that he was a little
intimidated by the thought of leading a master class.

Karmann might be too bashful to call himself a
master, but there is no denying his experience in
cinema. In his native France, he has acted for many
years, appearing in both television and films.

Apart from playing the role of both actor and
director in “La Vérité,” Karmann also directed 2003’s
“A la petite semaine,” and “Kennedy et moi” in 1999.
Karmann also can add “producer” to his titles, as he
owns a production company entitled “Les Films A4”
with two other people.

Since “La Vérité ou presque” was a film adapted
from a novel by Stephen McCauley, Karmann began
the class by explaining the difference between novels
and films.

Karmann explained when you are reading a novel,
you can take a break from reading, but when you
are watching a film, “Your mind won’t be able to go
somewhere else. There’s nothing else but what’s on
the screen.”

The idea of captivating an audience fascinates
Karmann, he said, admitting that when he reads a
book, he sees the movie in his mind as well.

“I became a director because I am an actor,” Karmann
said to the audience in his accented but well-spoken
English. When directing other actors, Karmann said
he tries to figure out what kind of an actor he has
in front of him, explaining that different performers
process things in different ways.

Karmann originally read the French translation of
Stephen McCauley’s book “True Enough” after one of
his business partners encouraged him to read it.

Karmann was pleased to encounter the theme of
truth and lies, something that he thinks everyone
can relate to. McCauley seemed to be satisfied by the
adaptation of his novel, much more than one of his
previous novels “The Object of My Affection” (a novel
adapted to film starring Jennifer Aniston). McCauley
said in that instance he was disappointed to see the
characters were quite generic, while “La Vérité” brought
out the true nature of his characters.

Another contributor to the movie was French
lyricist and actress Catherine Olson. Olson said one
of the biggest joys for her was being able to record
the soundtrack with extremely talented musicians in
the best studios in France. Olson wrote the lyrics to
the song, but not the music, and said she also enjoyed
writing the jazz lyrics in English, because “English is
a swingy language.”

One of the most interesting points of the night came
when an audience member asked Karmann what he
thought of big-budget American films. Karmann replied
with a remarkably modest answer, saying, in France
there are big budget films as well – films he likes to
call “cinéma distraction.” However, Karmann had no
objection to these films, saying sometimes people need
them and that both independent and big budget films
can be “spectacular.”

The audience seemed fixated on cultural aspects
during the discussion. Another question was raised in
regard to adapting American characters in the novel to
be able to relatable to a French audience. Karmann’s
answer was straightforward, “No, I didn’t have to
change the characters. What is European, and what is
American? I’m not so sure we’re so different.”