Sergi Portabella filming Jean-François y el sentido de la vida
- The Spanish filmmaker is currently filming his debut feature film in Catalonia and Paris; a French-Spanish co-production supported by the MEDIA programme
Sergi Portabella throws himself into filming Jean-François and the Meaning of Life [+see also:
film review
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film profile], a feature film on discovering the world that he chose to film in Paris, Barcelona and Girona. The project is being produced by Spanish companies A Contraluz Films and El sentit de la vida AIE, in partnership with French company Surprise Alley and with the support of the ICEC, the ICAA, the European Union’s Europe Creative MEDIA programme, and TV channels TV3 and TVE. Sergi Portabella was selected for the Berlinale Talents section of the Berlin Film Festival in 2014 with the screenplay for Jean-François y el sentido de la vida. The film will be distributed by Vercine and Filmin in 2018.
Jean-François and the Meaning of Life tells the story of this complicated and delicate period called adolescence through two main characters: Francesc is a secondary-school student who is bullied and has suicidal whims, but thanks to the works of Albert Camus, discovers an unexpected world. Lluna, on the other hand, is tired of adults telling her what to do and is in love with Philippe, a young French boy. So Francesc and Lluna decide to go to Paris, each with a different objective in mind.
For Sergi Portabella, who also wrote short films Te quiero, The Astronaut on the Roof and El fin del mundo será en Brasil, this debut feature, which stars Max Megías, Claudia Vega (Eva [+see also:
film review
trailer
film profile]), Agata Roca (Truman [+see also:
film review
trailer
making of
interview: Cesc Gay
film profile]), Pau Dura and Theo Cholbi, ʺis based on experiences from (his) childhood and (his) adolescenceʺ. ʺI wanted, he said, to convey the feelings I experienced in this period of my life, when I was trying to find my voice and trying to find the meaning of this world, when everything was happening for the first time. So every little adventure, conversation or interpretation was important and decisive for me. I had the impression that each one would have a huge impact on my future personality. At the time, trying to attribute some meaning to life was a burning concern, which demanded an urgent response.ʺ
(Translated from Spanish)
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