Anne Fontaine: The Vision Behind ‘Coco Before Chanel’
César and BAFTA-nominated writer-director Anne Fontaine’s latest film, Coco Before Chanel, was internationally recognized and praised by critics alike, nominated for an Academy Award® for Best Achievement in Costume Design, and won the César for Best Costume Design. Over the years, Fontaine has seen several of her films grace the screens at the Cannes Film Festival. Her first film, Les histoires d’amour finissent mal… en général, screened at the Critic’s Week in Cannes in 1993, and Nouvelle Chance premiered at the Cannes Film Festival in 2005. Independent Film Quarterly’s Nicole Holland caught up with Anne Fontaine to discuss the making of Coco Before Chanel, working with Canal +/StudioCanal, and her first ‘Cannes experience’.
IFQ: You adapted Coco Before Chanel from Edmonde Charles-Roux’s book. In what ways was the adaptation process a challenge?
Anne Fontaine: Edmonde Charles-Roux nor anybody else was actually standing by Coco at every moment of her life, especially the early part. For the lack of factual certainty, a book, even though it’s a genuine biography, can suggest, suppose, imply, evoke, discuss… whereas a motion picture has to “be sure” or pretend to be. The challenge was to fill the biographical voids in an entertaining, yet plausible way.
IFQ: You wanted to make a movie about Chanel’s youth, but you didn’t want to necessarily make a biopic. Why did you decide to focus on the first part of her life?
AF: Several reasons: the need to avoid the many “famous characters” her later life was populated with; complete freedom vis–à–vis the House of Chanel; and, above all, my fascination (clearly expressed by the title of the film) for the way she designed herself, even more than for her achievements.
IFQ: In what ways do you think your perspective and directorial vision enhanced the film rather than taking the route of a straight-forward, traditional biopic?
AF: I’m not sure this is for me to say. I can only repeat my previous answer: trying to understand how a woman (or a man) becomes somebody else, and goes beyond the given destiny was the triggering factor.
IFQ: I heard that the script wasn’t written when you initially met Audrey Tautou, but she liked your vision and story of the character. However, if Audrey declined, then you wouldn’t have made this movie. Why do you strongly feel that Audrey “completes” the Coco character?
AF: I simply can’t think of any other actress who shares that same physical and moral resemblance to Coco. When we shot the final sequence [in] rue Cambon, at Chanel, some fairly old ladies who had worked there for 40 years burst into tears when seeing Audrey bring their idol to life.
IFQ: In the film’s commentary, you said that your friend wrote Chanel m’a dit, which consisted of stories told by Chanel’s last assistant, Lilou Marquand. Did you ever personally meet Marquand or Coco Chanel?
AF: I never met Coco Chanel, but I did see Lilou Marquand on a couple of occasions. She was very elegant and really classy. You could feel the strength of Chanel’s personality shining with and through her.
IFQ: Which part of production did you find most challenging?
AF: The period thing. I find it always difficult to avoid that museum look when dealing with historical representations. I hope the film feels modern enough.
IFQ: Coco Chanel defied the odds and founded an empire in a man’s world. As a female director and screenwriter, in what ways do you identify with Chanel?
AF: Female writers and directors are relatively common in France. I honestly don’t think that a woman who makes a film today can compare to Chanel a hundred years ago.
IFQ: What message or themes do you hope audiences discover and discuss after watching Coco Before Chanel?
AF: It really depends on our individual stories. But, the strength of Chanel’s determination and resilience can certainly be pondered upon. Of course, her fate has a dark side too, and raises a disturbing question: can you transcend yourself if you’re not unhappy?
IFQ: How did you secure funding since this is your first large-scale, multi-million dollar feature film?
AF: Warner Brothers, through their French office, liked the concept very early on and confirmed their involvement as soon as we had a screenplay.
IFQ: Switching topics, what was your initial reaction when you discovered that your film, Nathalie… was being remade into Chloe with an American cast?
AF: I was intrigued and flattered. I always liked Atom’s [Egoyan] films, so I didn’t worry at all.
IFQ: I read an article that said you were not satisfied with Nathalie because the two French lead actresses, Fanny Ardant and Emmanuelle Béart, objected to your original intention for an erotic relationship to develop between their characters. Is this true?
AF: Fanny and Emmanuelle didn’t really object to anything. The truth is, that I, myself, wasn’t blunt enough in taking the erotic implications as far as I should have. I feel more to blame than the actresses for it.
IFQ: Moving forward, your film, Nouvelle Chance, screened at the 2005 Cannes Film Festival. As a director and screenwriter, in what ways did Cannes help propel your career?
AF: My first movie (Les histoires d’amour finissent mal… en général) premiered in Cannes, at the Critic’s Week in 1993. I knew very few people and very little about the industry. It was quite an event for me. So, yes, the Cannes Festival has a special meaning to me, possibly more from an emotional level than a strictly professional standpoint.
IFQ: Why do you choose to create and produce most of your films with Canal +/StudioCanal?
AF: These are two separate entities. Canal + is the dominant pay TV service in France, and they buy roughly two- thirds of the French production yearly, including my films so far! StudioCanal is a production company, owned by Canal +, which I’ve only worked with once (Nathalie…).
IFQ: Finally, what plans do you have at the moment in regards to future projects, artistic endeavors, etc?
AF: I’ll start shooting my next movie in September, 2010, in Paris. It’s a “romantic comedy with a twist,” starring Isabelle Huppert and Benoît Poelvoorde [Étienne Balsan] from Coco Before Chanel.
*Photo Credit: Cine-At