Camille in Hong Kong: The ‘Emily in Paris’ actor set to visit our city for her new film ‘Prodigieuses’

Would you say that learning the piano was the biggest challenge of the process?
It certainly was tough on the muscles, the back, the fingers and the hands. It was like a proper workout for the muscles that you don’t use if you’re not a pianist. And then you also have to pretend that you’re a piano prodigy. While shooting some of the scenes, I had an earphone in one ear and I had to pretend that I was playing and also talking to my partner. That was a lot of “workout” for my brain too.

How much of what we see onscreen is you and Robert playing on the keyboard?
When it’s a close-up of the hands, obviously what you see are not our hands, because a real pianist can tell if [our playing is] right or wrong. At first, the directors thought of using doubles, because the playing is too complicated. But they told us that we nailed it all. We learnt more than 20 pieces of piano music. So they kept every shot that was us playing on camera, except for our fingers.

Have you kept playing the piano after the movie?
Absolutely!

Prodigieuses highlights themes of perfectionism and keen competition in the art circle. Based on your experience, to what extent is this true of the art industry’s culture?
It’s a very good question. Right now, we’re in a society where everything is hardcore competition. You have to be the best or the quickest. The movie is definitely a mirror to society. On a personal level, I would say you have to be very tough on yourself if you want to succeed in the cinema industry. You don’t necessarily have to be perfect, but you have to be stubborn, have big dreams and pursue them.

On that note, do you feel the entertainment industry is an inclusive space?
It’s taking too much time [for the industry to become] more inclusive. But I am seeing a bit of a shift in the global industry. It’s better than 20 years ago as we now see more diversity on screen. All the streaming and the internet [which make content available worldwide] help a lot; certain platforms have laws under which [production houses] have to include a bisexual person, an Asian person, an Arabic person or a black person. And that’s a great thing, because otherwise we’ll go back to the 1990s, where we only see [white] people like me, and it’s not a good thing. We need a larger representation of the world.

In case you missed it: Beyond Hong Kong’s cop films and rom-coms: How director Oliver Chan brings social issues around motherhood and domestic workers to the screen

Tell us about your company Tazar Production. How is it making a change in the film industry?
I created this production company two years and a half ago, because my job is lonely. As an actor, I’m always waiting for my phone to ring to get cast. I missed the collective level and being with people to create narratives instead of being an instrument to tell someone else’s narratives. I have a group of friends and family around me who are very talented. So I brought together a team of eight, who all have very different visions and experiences of the world. That’s what makes us interesting. We’re a very international production house. We did five short movies in the past two years: they are in Russian, English, French and Wolof, a language in Senegal. We’re trying to be representative of the world. And the themes we work on are universal: AI, racism, abortion, or other themes that are very strong and political.

We’re working on two feature films and one series right now. Coming up, we want to tackle the subject of ecophobia.

Have you always been interested in filmmaking?
I wanted to be a war reporter in the first place. When I was 18, I passed my [public] examinations and moved to Paris [for university]. I wanted to do something fun and linked to journalism. So, I thought, maybe the theatre ... I could connect the two on a superficial level: the adrenaline, telling stories that people don’t know about, and how the theatre could teach me the ways of speaking to people, using diction or my voice which could be useful [in journalism]. I got into a theatre school and after the first class, I was hooked.

Years later, you landed a role in Emily in Paris, which catapulted you to global fame. How did you get this opportunity?
I was on vacation and had a fever. The casting director, whom I have known since my modelling days, called me in for the casting. She said, “You have to book a flight and come back. You have the lines in your email already. It’s a huge American project.” Now that I look back at the tape [of my audition], I don’t know how they even saw the character Camille in me. My voice was hoarse and I looked like sh*t.

Four seasons into the series, what are the highs and lows of the process?
Time is always the problem, and that’s the low point. But that’s not only an issue faced by the Emily in Paris team.

The high point is that I get to celebrate French culture. The first season was aired during the lockdown. I received tons of messages saying how they loved the show, and the adventures, travels, cultures, beautiful clothes and everything. It’s very light-hearted, funny and a little cuckoo. I guess that’s what people needed at that time.

What is your take on the French culture presented in the series?
It’s like Sex in the City, which isn’t really New York, just as Emily in Paris is not really Paris. I’d say only the rich people live like that. You have a part of Paris’s reality but to others, this reality doesn’t make sense. It’s heightened reality. Everything is over the top because we have to bring in the comedy and the clichés, which are elements that divide the people but at the same time make them talk about them. It’s very intelligent marketing.

And while Camille is in Asia, what do you look forward to the most in your upcoming visit?
I’m a gourmet, so I’m very excited to try the cuisine in Hong Kong. I also love these coloured buildings. It’s like they are straight out of the movies, so I’d love to see them for myself.

I don’t know what my schedule in Hong Kong will be like, but [while in Asia,] I’d love to see movies. I’m a big fan of Hirokazu Koreeda and Bong Joon-ho, and I’m very much into Asian culture. I think it’s so subtle, beautiful and poetic. The way Bong filmed Parasite couldn’t have been done by another director, and the culture it presents is so interesting.

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