Anora: Vintage and sensual, does the Palme d’Or aesthetic remind you of euphoria? We will explain why!

Modern beautiful woman

Anora is an escort girl at a strip club in Brooklyn. When she meets the son of a Russian oligarch, she is quickly transformed into a modern beauty. Without thinking, she enthusiastically marries her prince charming; But when the news reaches Russia, the fairy tale is quickly threatened: the young man’s parents travel to New York with the firm intention of annulling the marriage…

Anora is the new film from Sean Baker, director of the critically acclaimed The Florida Project. Titled Mikey Madison (Scream, 2022), this feature film is tagged “2024 Cannes Film Festival Palme d’OrIndeed, Anora won the Cannes jury thanks to its stunning storytelling and bold visual style.

Similar to euphoria

Mikey Madison, who plays Anora, wears extravagant and flamboyant outfits throughout the film, from colorful bodysuits to fur coats. Pink strands sparkle in her hair, and sequins sparkle in her eyes. It’s hard not to think of the stylized makeup and clothes of the characters in the hit series Euphoria.

Another point in common with the series: the aesthetics of the film. Indeed, director of photography Drew Daniels, known for lighting Waves and It Comes at Night, and with whom Sean Baker had already collaborated on Red Rocket, worked notably on Euphoria. In the same genre, Drew Daniels was the director of photography on The Idol, as well as directed by Sam Levinson, creator of Euphoria.

“with Sean We were looking for the gray and cold atmosphere of winter New York, which contrasts with the saturated reds and colors of the club and Las Vegas.“- explains the cinematographer. The audience finds these two different atmospheres throughout the film with a palette of white, black and gray, highlighted by red and blue in the interior.

Sean Baker thus developed a very accurate color range and careful lighting as well as choreographed shots.

The director also decided to shoot in 35mm with an anamorphic lens, which allows for very wide shots by compressing the image horizontally, then stretching it to create a panoramic effect. They also provide unique visual effects such as oval background blur and flare, an optical trick that creates bright flashes or halos in an image.

Much of the Euphoria series was also shot with anamorphic lenses, contributing to its immersive and cinematic visual style.

Aesthetics inspired by the 70s

For his film, Sean Baker was influenced by New Hollywood, Italian, Spanish and Japanese cinema of the 1970s… The director draws from the aesthetics and sensibilities of the films of this era.

“In general, I approached the film as an independent cinematographer in the 70sDrew Daniels explains. We shot the streets of New York and Brooklyn in natural light and I was especially inspired by the photo.Owen Roizman In Subway Pirates and French connection. I learned how to use zoom lenses and similar films from Italian cinema contempt from Jean-Luc Godard For the use of color and composition“.

The aesthetic search for images, both vintage and sparkling, will touch viewers of all backgrounds.

Anora can be seen in theaters from October 30.