Tamara Vol.2: "A film with a normal heroine was a need for the public" [INTERVIEW] – News Movie

Screenrush: Tamara, released in 2016, was a nice film about adolescence, at once funny, fresh, and rather just in his purpose. What did you want to tell with this sequel, Tamara Vol.2, released in theaters a little less than two years later?

Alexandre Castagnetti (director): In this sequel we wanted to tell another time in Tamara's life. Indeed we were rather in the high school years on the first and there we pbad a course. She got her bac, they all got their bac. And they find themselves in student life. It's really the middle between adolescence and adulthood, and there are lots of questions that come up at that time. A lot of freedom too, so it's a good badtail.

And through that we wanted to tell a lot of things: roommate, bullshit between friends, questions about professional life, studies, loves, is it serious or not serious, the relationship to parents, … lots of things that happen at that time, around 20 years old, that we all knew. With my co-author, Beatrice Fournera, we had a lot to tell but the actors also put a lot of themselves in the film. There is a lot of sincerity, a lot of truth in this new part. It was a little removed from the comics, which did not deal with those years precisely, but we still find the characters that pleased the public on the first.

It was obvious from the departure for you not to follow the comics, which continues to happen in high school in its different volumes, and to focus rather on the student life of the characters?

In fact what happened it is that on the first-round tour of the first part, we have received extremely emotional, very touching testimonials from lots of young girls and mothers. We did not expect it but we felt that there was something a little stronger than just an entertainment, just a comedy, in this film and in these characters especially. Having a different heroine … Well, rather a normal heroine actually, and not a magazine image, it was a need for the public obviously. So I wanted to follow this character in his evolution, and not to make an encore. Anyway they all evolved, Héloïse Martin, Rayane Bensetti, and all the others. So we really wanted to show their lives three years later. I did not hesitate a lot but I obviously asked permission from Zidrou and Darbade, the authors, and Louise Darbade who is the new screenwriter, to make this new little evolution of the character and as they are adorable people they m said "Go ahead". And now it inspires them even for the comic book sequel

The film talks a lot about social networks, Instagram, influencers, and the race for likes and followers. What is your view of this "Instagram generation"?

It's hard to take a look, but in any case I notice things I did not experience. This obsession to have a sort of followers' court, to be recognized on a media, as if we were all actors or TV presenters. Everyone has his small ratings now. It's extra pressure at any time of the day. There is a parallel life and there is even now, this is what we are dealing with in the film, a real professional potential. One can make of one's life a way to earn money. It's a bit, I think, what Kim Kardashian invented in his day and today everyone can do it.

Although almost all the actors of the first are back, this second installment of Tamara also welcomes many new comedians, including Idrissa Hanrot, Manon Azem, and Karidja Touré. It's the chances of the casting or you had a real desire to work with them?

There are many actors that I called because I wanted to work with them. And I even brought a lot of comedians whom I had met before. I am thinking for example of Karidja Toure, Osama Kheddam, and Noémie Chicheportiche, who are people I had worked with on La Colle. These are three actors that I find very talented and I wanted to see again. I even wrote the roles thinking of them. Osama Kheddam, who plays the character a bit troublemaker of the roommate, I wrote thinking about him. I wanted him to be here, I think he's great. Karidja, she is a bit like that in life. She is very active on Instagram and she is always in impeccable, beautiful clothes, so I immediately thought of her. Idrissa Hanrot I know him since he was 18 years old. And Manon Azem I had seen in a series and I wanted to work with her on La Colle but it could not be done. Finally, almost everyone, I knew them already and I just had to call them. I was very spoiled on the cast of this volume 2.

And Annie Cordy and Nikos Aliagas, who makes a cameo in the film, it was difficult to convince them?

No it was not complicated at all. They were delighted to be called for a movie like that, very fresh, very young. With a lot of sincerity in the subject. They were delighted to be badociated with that. Moreover, the character of Annie Cordy, it's the same, it's a little it. There is a pbadage that people will not see in the film because it was too long filming where she tells her own life Tamara and his girlfriend Sam who have just landed in Paris as a provincial. And she says to them "I lived the same thing, I came to Paris at the age of 20, 70 years ago, as a leader of the Lido, I came from my little Belgium". And she showed them pictures on the wall that were her real photos. It was so cool to have this relay (…) We'll put it in the DVD because we could not cut Annie when she spoke but it was a bit long for the film.

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No, she agreed to do the film, but she did a fairly demanding training, the Conservatory of Dramatic Art, which did not allow students to do too much. filming because otherwise they do not follow the curriculum. So unfortunately she could not accept for a calendar issue but she was very uptight. And I hope we will meet soon because again it is a beautiful meeting. A very, very great talent.

You are already thinking about a possible Tamara Vol.3?

In fact it turns out that we are doing a tour of foregoing and it's amazing, we get a lot of love. The audience is pretty dithyrambic with us. People want to see Tamara again, to follow her adventures. And at each projection we are asked to do a third part. Obviously it's great fun, but if we do a third, and I say "if" because it also depends on success, there should be a good story and we are still talking about something different. What made me want to do this volume 2 are the public testimonials and also what I had in memory of movie memories. I think of the trilogies or quadrilogies of Klapisch or Truffaut, without comparing myself to them of course. But I like the side where we follow characters like that over years and years and see them change on each film. Do not make a repeat encore. Saying "How are they going to become about the next movie?"

So if there is a third part, I really want to tell a new phase in the life of Tamara and her friends. Grow together, with the public. And here I think it will be a real pleasure to be able to do another part.

The Trailer of Tamara Vol.2, released this Wednesday: