5 million copies sold: La Tresse arrives in theaters and will make you cry

Director Laetitia Colombani is back behind the camera with La Tresse, 15 years after her last film, My Stars and Me. In theaters on November 29th, her new work introduces us to 3 women who are going to fight. The first story takes us to India. The story follows Smita, an untouchable. She dreams of getting her daughter out of her miserable condition and into school.

Then we will leave for Italy. Giulia works in her father’s workshop. When he crashes, he discovers that the family business is in ruins. Finally, we end this trip in Canada.

Sarah, a famous lawyer, is about to be promoted to head of her firm when she learns that he is ill. Three lives, three women, three continents. Three battles to fight. Although they don’t know each other, Smitha, Julia and Sarah bond without knowing what is most intimate and unique about them.

A bestseller as inspiration

La Tresse is adapted from the novel of the same name, written by Laetitia Colombani and published in 2017. The latter himself created a film version of his work, the bestseller sold more than 5 million copies! The story of these three women from different cultures and contexts was born in January 2015, on a day when the filmmaker accompanied one of his very close friends to a wig shop.

She had just found out she had cancer and was starting chemotherapy. She opted for a natural Indian hair wig. Then I remembered a documentary I had seen on TV years ago that showed how the hair offered by pilgrims to an Indian temple was traveled outside the country and served. As a basis for making a wig.The director explains.

From there I came up with the idea of ​​a story on three continents: the Indian woman who offered her hair to the temple, the Western woman who received it, the worker who processed the hair. I had the idea of ​​donating my hair to the temple for a long time, but I was missing other links to the story.”entrusts Laetitia Colombani.

International actor

Laetitia Colombani absolutely wanted to shoot in the three languages ​​and three countries described in the book. So he called a casting director in each region. Michael Laguens directed all three castings, which took place in parallel. Smita’s director did not want a Bollywood actress but a black actor like the untouchables.

“Mia Malzer Comes from theater and starred in The Field, a short film that won a BAFTA award. For her daughter Lalita, I wanted an untouchable, not necessarily a child who had experience: the Indian casting director went to orphanages for street children. He noticed a 9-year-old girl Sajda Pathan, born in the district. Sajda had a head full of lice and was begging for food. He could neither read nor write. When I met him, I was impressed by his intelligence and screen presence. “Laetitia Colombani recalls.

For the role of Julia, the Italian casting director offered many young actors to the French director. When he saw Fotini Peluso, he flashed. “She’s divine! She had exactly what I was looking for: a beauty that goes unnoticed, a sensuality that’s not manufactured, she likes it, but she doesn’t know it”he emphasizes.

As for Sarah, the American agent offered the La Tresse team a meeting with Kim Raver. Laetitia Colombani knew the actress thanks to the TV series Grey’s Anatomy and 24 Hours. Physically, he perfectly matched the character imagined by the director.

“Blonde, thin, beautiful body, but great strength. The meeting went perfectly: Kim completely understood the character, torn between personal life and career. Kim has two sons in her life, she has traveled a lot while caring. Her children”The artist specifies.

tiring shot

The filming of La Tresse was delayed several times due to successive prison terms. Laetitia Colombani and her team first went to India, then to Canada and Italy. In total, the production took six months. For the feature film team, it was both a speed race and a long-distance marathon.

“When we were shooting in one country, we were preparing to shoot in another country. Due to the different time zones, we had crazy long working days: we often got up at 5 in the morning to finish Zoom meetings at 11. I experienced it. Very intensely, because I had the feeling that three I could make a movie in one.”emphasizes Laetitia Colombani.