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PRODUCTION / FUNDING France

David Depesseville’s Astrakan gets ready for Locarno

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- Mirko Gianinni, Jehnny Beth and Bastien Bouillon lead the cast of the director’s first feature film, produced by Tamara Films and set to be unveiled in the Cineasti del Presente section

David Depesseville’s Astrakan gets ready for Locarno
Mirko Gianinni in Astrakan

A world premiere at the beginning of next month in the Cineasti del Presente competition of the 75th Locarno Film Festival (running 3 – 13 August) is on the cards for David Depesseville’s debut feature film Astrakan [+see also:
film review
trailer
film profile
]
.

The cast stars young Mirko Gianinni alongside Jehnny Beth (nominated for 2019’s Best New Hope César, courtesy of An Impossible Love [+see also:
film review
trailer
film profile
]
, also at her best in Paris, 13th District [+see also:
film review
trailer
film profile
]
, Sticking Together [+see also:
film review
trailer
film profile
]
and Don Juan [+see also:
film review
trailer
interview: Serge Bozon
film profile
]
, and soon to be seen in Anatomie d’une chute), Bastien Bouillon (highly acclaimed in Cannes this year, via The Night of the 12th [+see also:
film review
trailer
interview: Dominik Moll
film profile
]
, which has just hit French cinemas) and Théo Costa-Marini.

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Written by the director, the story revolves around Samuel, a wild-eyed 12-year-old orphan who is several weeks into a placement with his foster carer, Marie. The latter, torn between her feelings and a need for money, is married to Clément with whom she has two sons, Alexis et Dimitri. Samuel soon gets to know this new family and their secrets: Clément wavers between severity and clumsy tenderness, the youngest son Dimitri does his best to annoy this newest family member, while older brother Alexis seems preoccupied by his relationship with Marie’s worrying brother Luc. Their young neighbour Hélène is the one who helps Samuel get to grips with his new life. Under everyone’s gaze, Samuel learns to break free, plunged into a sea of ongoing emotions and caught between impressionistic discoveries, dismal outlooks, sensual unrest and extreme sensitivity…

Astrakan is produced by Carole Chassaing on behalf of Tamara Films, in co-production with Micro Climat. The film enjoys support from the Bourgogne-Franche-Comté region, as well as from the SOFICA company Sofitvcine. Distribution in French cinemas is entrusted to New Story.

For the record, Tamara Films recently produced Penelope My Love [+see also:
film review
interview: Claire Doyon
film profile
]
by Claire Doyon (unveiled last year in competition at FidMarseille and scheduled for cinema release on 12 October).

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(Translated from French)

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