“We’re talking about real things”: Alix Poisson and Jonathan Zakai on La Tribu on TF1

In La Tribu, TF1’s new family series arriving on Monday 5 February at 9.10pm, Alix Poisson (Sambre) and Jonathan Zaccai (Le Bureau des Légendes) play Camille and Martin, a couple in their forties. settled with their children. Between their children, sister, parents, but also their ex(s), this family forms a real “tribe” with an inevitably unstable balance.

In celebration of the La Rochelle Arts Festival, AlloCiné caught up with the two actors to tell us more about this ambitious new series, which expertly blends comedy and drama.

In AlloCiné: La Tribu, you play Camille and Martin, two protagonists. Can you introduce us to your characters?

Alix Poisson : I play Camille, a mother of three children. She recently met Martin and they decided to move in together. Both of them will have to make this blended family and make it work.

But what he didn’t take into account is that it’s not just the kids who need to make sure they communicate well. There are also exes and grandparents. Therefore, their daily life will become very messy.

Jonathan Zakai : For my part, I play Martin, who is a French teacher. We are about to start a love story that will have many challenges. We’ll have to manage exes, but also teenage crises and all the challenges that come with a blended family. Therefore, this is a love story that begins in rather hot conditions.

What attracted you to these roles?

J.Z. : I wanted to do comedy. I liked the tone of the series because it’s an intelligent comedy based on specific things. This is not just a series of scams. What I also really liked was working with Alix, who I really like. It was a joyous adventure to jump into it, experiencing everyday moments and finally playing in such a register.

AP : It’s the same for me. As soon as I read it, I found Tony very successful. The fact that we can have big emotional moments as well as other moments that are really funny was really fun to play. I was also very happy to know that I was going to work with Jonathan. The whole series is based on a couple, so it was important to have fun with my partner.

The volume touches on many contemporary and sensitive topics, including abortion in the first few episodes. Was it also something that would have interested you in this type of theme in TF1’s prime time?

AP : Yes quite. And then there are the topics that are discussed not so strongly…

J.Z. : This is not social. These subjects exist, but they are not highlighted as the beginning of the series. We are talking about true things, but which pass through the fluidity of the narrative.

AP : Yes, sometimes it is even unspeakable. It’s very subtle. For example, for the characters of Colette and Rose, we wonder what Colette has to do with the whole story, and we slowly learn. I think that’s what’s good about this series.

In La Tribu you act as a troupe of children. How did the filming go?

J.Z. : It could have been difficult to manage, but they were so professional and happy to play that it went very well. It was fun. It was fun developing them.

Alix, you played in the short format Parents, instructions for use. What is the difference between a short family series and a 50 minute feature series?

AP : In the short format, the cursor is higher. It should be funny in five minutes. So we had colorful characters. But it was very honest and people could project themselves and identify with us. Isabel Martinez, my character, was still completely sad and neurotic. The cursor in the tribe is necessarily low, because this family must be able to talk to everyone. But there are still common points.