Christa Theret French film actress Date of Birth: 25.06.1991 Country: France

1. Discussing Renoir's Art
2. Discovering Andrée Heuschling
3. Feeling a Connection
4. Working with Nudity
5. Working with Gérard Depardieu

French Actress Christa Theret – on her role as a muse to a great artist and working with Gérard Depardieu

The film "Renoir: The Last Love" by director Gilles Bourdos is being released in Russian theaters. The film tells the story of the relationship between the great artist Renoir and the beauty Andrée Heuschling, who posed for many of his paintings, later married his son, filmmaker Jean Renoir, and became a popular actress in silent films under the name Catherine Hessling. The role of Andrée was played by Christa Theret, who met with the journalist from "Izvestia" in Paris.

Discussing Renoir's Art

You must be familiar with Renoir's work.
- Of course. By the way, something interesting happened with Renoir's paintings that we had on set. Naturally, we needed copies of his canvases, and the studio ordered them from a professional copyist. But when they were ready, it became clear that they couldn't be placed in Renoir's studio: these paintings lacked soul, they simply reeked of forgery. So our producers started looking for a real artist who could also do copies, and they found one. And Renoir's studio, which appears in our film, was perfectly restored according to archival photographs. Olive trees were planted around it to ensure that the color, light, and details were exactly as they were in Renoir's time.

Discovering Andrée Heuschling

Did you know about your character before starting work on the film?
- I have to admit, I didn't really know her. She's not very well known in France right now, and when I received the offer to play this role, I started gathering information about her. I had to consult with experts. Why this film is so important to us is that it is a sign of respect for her memory, and we hope that now this personality will once again interest the French. As a result, I was able to watch several films with her, and I was struck by their energy. Perhaps it was this energy that allowed Andrée to rise from the social bottom and become who she became: a famous actress and feminist ideologist. She was a very strong woman.

Feeling a Connection

Do you still feel her presence in your life?
- I even feel a certain closeness between us. I, too, was born into a humble family. My mother was a model, and my father was an artist, but he didn't show his works to anyone for thirty years, he was just afraid. Success means a lot to me, just like it meant a lot to her. At the same time, I understand perfectly well that there are more talented people than me who, unlike me, don't achieve success in the film industry. I was lucky.

Working with Nudity

Did you have any internal reservations about the scenes with nudity?
- At first, yes. But the director explained it very simply: we're making a film about Renoir. He didn't paint black squares or geometric compositions, he didn't even particularly love landscapes. He loved the female nude. And we can't make a film about him without the female nude. My mother's experience as a model also helped me. She explained to me how much the female body means to an artist. And, of course, our director was incredibly tactful. There were very few people on set during those scenes, and no one gave me a reason to blush with shame.

Working with Gérard Depardieu

You were practically filming "Renoir" and "The Man Who Laughs" at the same time, where you had Gérard Depardieu as your partner. Obviously, your duet with Buche worked out well, but how was it working with Depardieu?
- Oh! He's a volcano of a person. Lately, his name has been in the spotlight in connection with his tax emigration, and opinions on that vary, but in my opinion, it has nothing to do with Depardieu the actor. He truly is an icon in our profession, and at the same time, he is incredibly down-to-earth. No airs. But when he appears on set, you can physically feel the atmosphere change. At the same time, he is a very provocative person. He is a genius, and if you accept that, it's very easy to work with him. However, if you're not ready to consider him a genius, it becomes more difficult. I'm convinced of his genius. During breaks between takes, he can sit around, chat about nonsense, and then step onto the set and instantly switch on. It's truly magnificent. I'm not surprised that he was offered a position as Minister of Culture in Russia. Actually, he was offered a position not in the federal government, but in one of the republics.
- Really? I thought he could have become the most important person responsible for culture throughout Russia.