‘Titane’ Director Explains Why the ‘Macarena’ Was the ‘Worst’ for Vincent Lindon
You’ve heard of the Oscars, but have you heard of the Isaacs? The Isaac Awards, in honor of the great Oscar Isaac, are Showbiz Cheat Sheet’s unique spin on the Academy Awards. However, the Isaac Awards are different from the Oscars in that they celebrate the best movies of 2021 that deserve recognition but will not receive that recognition through Oscar nods. The 2022 Isaac Awards feature five categories: Best Performance, Best Scene-Stealer, Best Crowd-Pleasing Moment, Best Action Sequence, and Fan-Favorite Movie. Voting will be open via this form from March 7-20. Winners will be announced on March 24.
Titane is one of the most seductively disturbing movies of the past few years. Writer/director Julia Ducournau approaches the film with care and precision, including her work with the actors. However, this production was quite difficult for everyone involved on the set. Ducournau revealed that Vincent Lindon had the “worst” time during the “Macarena” scene.
‘Titane’: Vincent Lindon plays a desperate father
Titane takes place during a series of unexplained murders. Alexia (Agathe Rousselle) is responsible for these deaths, but she knows that she can’t evade justice forever. As a result, she makes the split-second decision to disguise herself as a boy who went missing 10 years ago named Adrien.
Alexia soon meets the boy’s father, Vincent (Lindon), during the next section of Titane. However, she doesn’t speak to remain undercover. Meanwhile, Vincent is willing to do anything it takes to protect the son he lost all of those years ago. He incorporates Alexia into every aspect of his life, setting forth an unexpected relationship for both of them.
Writer/director Julia Ducournau explained why the ‘Macarena’ was the ‘worst’ part of ‘Titane’ for Vincent Lindon
The Landmark Theatres YouTube channel posted a post-screening Q&A with Ducournau. She talked about Lindon’s phenomenal performance in Titane, but revealed that it wasn’t an easy task for the actor. In fact, one of the most difficult components for the actor involved singing and dancing.”
“The ‘Macarena’ was the worst for him,” Ducournau said. “Like, really. We rehearsed, we rehearsed, we rehearsed, and it was impossible. It did not go through. I rehearsed with him and we’re singing like idiots together, we’re singing the ‘Macarena.’ I even did the dance for him to get the pace of it. Didn’t work at all.”
Ducournau continued: “In the end, I just tried to embrace that. I thought, ‘The fact that he actually can’t sing is very endearing and is a very nice light on the character.’ For him, it was a very big moment of anxiety (laughs). The dancing, as well, but the dancing, it was different.”
“I think he surrendered into dancing way more than he thought he would ever be able to,” Ducournau said. “There was a form of release there. I think it was also linked to the fact that, not only did he not know the codes of my cinema, so it made him go a bit blind into the film.”
Julia Ducournau had to establish trust with her cast
Ducournau explained that her filmmaking process on Titane initially made Lindon a bit nervous. However, this is her style and the actor was in great hands.
“I’m someone would never show images of the film to the actors, but to no one to the crew,” Ducournau said. “I don’t do replays at all. I don’t watch the rushes, so no one else watches the rushes either. So, basically, we just go all in at every scene.”
Ducournau continued: “At the start, Vincent was very worried about that and we talked about it for a long time, for at least a year and a half. I was like, ‘Vincent, this is how it’s going to go, because this is how I work. I can’t work anyway else, and I can’t work while showing you every time what we’re doing. You need to trust me and I’m gonna trust you and I’m gonna make you feel safe, but you have got to trust me.’”
However, the filmmaker believes that this ultimately allowed Lindon to let go of his nerves for the iconic dancing scenes in Titane.
“So, I think in dancing, somehow it’s just a reflection of this trust that he gave me that was so generous,” Ducournau explained. “He was a real trooper on set, it was amazing. I think that it really shows in the dancing part and it shows that he’s just surrendering to the character fully. I love that.”
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