Alain Guiraudie, known for films such as L’inconnu du lac (2013), Rester vertical (2016), and Ce vieux rêve qui bouge (2001), will present his latest film at this edition of Film Fest Ghent. In Miséricorde (2024), a man returns to his hometown, where he becomes embroiled in a tangle of imminent violence and covert desire, with a special role for the local priest.
In Alain Guiraudie’s oeuvre, taboos are broken not out of wantonness but out of an insatiable curiosity about border areas. The society in which class, ethnicity, sexuality, and gender are strictly distinguished is shaken up. The films are populated by a motley crew that is by no means caricatured, as each embodies a mystery. The slogan from the queer movement – “our desires cause disorder” – is echoed in Guiraudie’s films.
Language often acts as a catalyst in his work: each sentence unlocks the possibility of a new plot twist. In this investigation of dialogue that propels, withholds, drives, and arouses suspicion, the writer Guiraudie becomes visible. His first novel Ici commence la nuit was published in 2014 and Rabalaïre was published in 2021, which inspired the film Viens que je t'emmene (2022).
Nina de Vroome, editorial board member of Sabzian, will talk with Guiraudie about the genesis of Miséricorde and about themes, working methods, and motivations that play a role in his oeuvre. In what ways do his practices as a novelist, screenwriter, and director influence each other? How does a screenplay come about? When does a text lead to a film and not a novel, and what is at stake for Alain Guiraudie in his work? These and other questions will be addressed in this Director’s Talk.
Photograph: © Vincent Desailly
