What is it about?
“Welcome to my life,” is the phrase Sylvie Hoffman repeats throughout the day, or almost. Sylvie has been a nurse manager at Marseille Nord Hospital for 40 years. His life goes on. Between patients, mother, husband and daughter, she always gave her days to others. What if he decided to think a little for himself? did they succeed? Does he have the right, but above all, does he really want it?
He is one of the famous names in documentary film in France: Sébastien Lifshitz. César winner with Adolescentes, the highly visible Petite Fille and recently in the spotlight with Casa Susanna, broadcast on Arte, a little-known theme around a secret network group of transvestites in the United States…
The prolific director is already back with a new documentary, Madame Hoffman, about a nurse executive who dedicated her life to a hospital. The film was screened at several festivals, such as Angoulême, where we met this director, who is as careful and talented as he is, showing the contours of this new film.
A brilliant portrait, sensitive and political
“The idea was to depict a woman, a woman in battle. I met Sylvie Hoffman by chance in Marseille. He should have given me the phone numbers of the nurses I tried to contact during the casting of the film. And suddenly I saw this woman coming, she was incredible. A person with a very strong personality without a filter is definitely Marselisa. Throughout this casting, it stayed in my mind and I couldn’t forget it. And suddenly, one day, I said to myself: I have to see it again. I went to see him at the hospital. Seeing her work, it was obvious that she was the woman I was looking for..”
Ultimately, the movie is you!
Sebastian Lifschitz continues on our microphone: “Often, in documentaries, you start from similar ideas, or you have a desire, but which is perhaps not fully defined. Ultimately, it’s the meetings that make the movies. There is someone who emerges from reality and pretends to be. A movie can start about you. The movie moves, it gets complicated, it brings back the hospital setting because she’s a nurse, and I found it all fascinating. And even more so when I went to his department and also met his team. It was also getting the location. It was not only a portrait shot, but also a profession and a whole team. So all this was finally crucial to the production and I decided to start.
Hospital inventory
The film is a kind of inventory of the hospital, as the director emphasizes. “We’re in a very special time and that’s where, obviously, there’s COVID. The film also follows the evolution of the epidemic. How is Sylvie trying to fight like crazy to just keep a service like hers running? We see that it is a constant struggle, never a break. It also comes at a pretty hefty price tag. And this unity, this world of women that I photographed, I find fantastic.”
In our interview, which you have to listen to in its entirety as a podcast, the filmmaker also discusses Casa Susanna (now available on DVD) with us and revisits his other works, including Teenagers and The Little Girl. He also talks about the return announced in fiction.
Madame Hoffmann is currently in theaters.
Comments collected at Angoulême Film Festival de la Francophonie 2023
Source: Allocine
Rose James is a Gossipify movie and series reviewer known for her in-depth analysis and unique perspective on the latest releases. With a background in film studies, she provides engaging and informative reviews, and keeps readers up to date with industry trends and emerging talents.
