20/08/2015 - Xavier Giannoli’s latest movie is heading to Venice and was co-produced by Prague-based outfit Sirena Film

The Czech Republic will be represented in competition on the Lido when the international project Marguerite [+see also:
film review
trailer
interview: Xavier Giannoli
film profile], directed by French filmmaker Xavier Giannoli, vies for the Golden Lion. The French lead producer, Fidelité Films, was supported by two co-producers – Prague-based Sirena Film and Belgium’s Scope Pictures – on the film, which was shot entirely in the Czech Republic. Giannoli is returning to Venice after having competed in 2012 with Superstar [+see also:
film review
trailer
interview: Xavier Giannoli
film profile], while the director’s previous works In the Beginning [+see also:
film review
trailer
film profile] and The Singer [+see also:
film review
trailer
film profile] (2006 and 2009, respectively) competed on the Croisette.

The film, shot chiefly in Prague over a period of 55 days spanning from September to November last year, with a production budget of €7.5 million, revolves around the central protagonist, Marguerite Dumont, a wealthy woman living in the 1920s who is devoted to her passion: music. It stars Catherine Frot as the leading, tone-deaf lady. “She sings wholeheartedly, but she sings terribly out of tune. In many ways quite similar to the character of Castafiore, Marguerite has been living her passion in her own bubble, and the audience of hypocrites, always coming along for a good laugh, acts as if she really was the diva she believes she is. When a young, provocative journalist decides to write a rave article on her latest performance, Marguerite starts to believe even further in her talent. This gives her the courage she needs to follow her dream. Despite her husband’s reluctance, and with the help of a has-been divo, who is both funny and mean, she decides to train for her first recital in front of a crowd of complete strangers.”  

The period comedy-drama is inspired by the life of Florence Foster Jenkins, an American amateur soprano considered to be one of the worst opera singers of all time. Stephen Frears is currently preparing a biopic bearing Jenkins’ name and starring Meryl Streep as the eponymous singer.

“I entered the co-production of Marguerite at a very early stage of production. The quality of the script and the talent of the director excited me – I knew we were going to make a great movie. We are proud of Marguerite’s selection within the Venice Film Festival competition, which will greatly enhance the movie’s run at the film festivals. Moreover, Marguerite will be distributed in more than 50 countries on every continent,” adds the co-owner of Sirena Film and the Czech co-producer of the movie, Artemio Benki. International sales are handled by Memento Films International, which has already sold the film to Benelux, Romania, Hong Kong, Japan, Israel and Australia, among others.

The 72^nd Venice International Film Festival runs from 2-12 September 2015.