Skin: Cult Paris nightclub Silencio returns to the Croisette for a pop-up festival

The secret is clear: silence returns to the skin.

Created by David Lynch and inspired by pop-ups around the world, from Berlin to Miami, the famous Paris nightclub returns this year for an 11-day cruise residency with the Cannes Film Festival. The 2022 part also marks the most ambitious Silence Cannes as it moves from a temporary venue to the festival’s headquarters at the Palais des Festivals, where the space can accommodate over 800 spectators per event. Club founder Arno Frisch has joined the hollywood reporter Talk to Zoom about your residency plans for May 17-27 this year, club rules, and which movies you most look forward to seeing on the big screen.

Congratulations on returning to Cannes. What will the new year be like for Silencio?

This year is completely different for us as we will be inside the Palais des Festival, which is really a central space for the festival. We will have a large space that will accommodate 800 people and this will allow us to do more programming. We work with France TV, the official sponsor of Cannes. It will be very interesting for us to be at the center of it all. It’s very exciting. Two years after COVID, I think people are really excited to do something.

Where will it be placed in the palace?

This is a club, a radio club. It has a 70’s feel, which is really cool and it also has an indoor/outdoor space with a terrace. This is above the casino. When you come out of the projection, it is there.

Since Silencio is a very careful environment, how can you transform this place into Silencio’s aesthetic?

We are doing more to transform the Silence using DNA. We bring you cocktails from Remy Savage, our bartender, who is truly amazing. Bring the same team that has been working with us for 10 years to get to know everyone. We also try to work with the same art groups we have to bring content to Paris. It’s really hard to move places, it’s going to be a lot of work, and since we feel completely comfortable with this place and we love the 70’s atmosphere and how cinematic it is, we just focused on bringing vibe and DNA.

For those of you who have never been silent, how would you describe this state of mind?

Silence now has three different locations. We have a story created by David Lynch [in Paris]. It’s actually underground, so you don’t really feel time. That space has a lot of different programming with performances, shows, shows, so it’s a very cultural space. Then we opened the Silence de Prés on the left bank of Paris. It has a 200-seat cinema and we do a lot of premieres there. He has a restaurant with a very young, talented, Michelin-starred chef, Guillaume Sanchez. We also opened a jazz club where modern jazz and hip hop are represented.

Last year we premiered another Silence in Ibiza with Jean Imbert, with whom we worked at the Cannes Film Festival a few years ago. There’s a continuum of people we work with, all amazing people from very different creative fields: music, fashion, film, art. When you go to Silence, that’s the mood.

Do you have a favorite memory or can you remember a particular night that felt like a perfect night of Silence?

We had very good memories and a lot of talent came out to celebrate his films. Maybe one night with Marion Cotillard when she came and trained with Jean Imbert. It was fun because it’s Silence, a meeting of very different creatives. It’s also a place where you can go and feel free. We didn’t have pictures of the interior before, so this could have been a place where people would come to Cannes after a very busy day and have a nice relaxing time.

Was there a general rule of no “pictures”?

A little, but now it’s hard to avoid photos everywhere. When we started Silence, it was the norm in the early years because we wanted to create a sense of life in the moment. It became kind of a struggle because it goes against what people want to do now. So we’re not strict about it anymore, but we still want people to feel comfortable in this place. The artists who come can actually spend the night at the club without any problem.

Are there other rules?

I don’t know if it’s the rule, but it refers to the Silence artists. Sure, it was designed by David Lynch, but it’s an artists’ house. We work closely with artists on programming issues and allow them to create and experiment with new projects. We don’t just do movies and shows, we love something more creative. Because it’s a small place, artists can come and try something different, maybe something more fragile, and actually work on something.

In terms of skin composition, which movies do you enjoy watching the most?

I love a lot of directors who come back to Cannes, like James Gray or David Cronenberg. I’m also looking forward to the films by Kirill Serebrennikov and Ruben Ostlund and the midnight showing by Quentin Dupier.

Do you avoid too many testimonials?

Yes. I think watching movies is important. We show films here in Paris [Cannes] It’s a good time for me to watch movies. Normally the skin is very intense, but I think it’s intense for everyone.

You said that Silence was created for the “creative night owl”. You consider yourself? How many hours do you sleep during the festival?

Yes it’s me. Sleep five to six hours a night year round and it’s about the same on your skin. Sometimes it can be less.

Outside of Silence, do you have a favorite skin patch?

Yes. I would love to go to Da Laura, an Italian restaurant in downtown Cannes. But sometimes, when I want to be outside, I like to go to Saint-Paul-de-Vince in the afternoon, perhaps for lunch at the hotel La Colombe d’Or. And this year I’m going to Mirazuron in Menton because this year we’re collaborating with their chef, Mauro Colagrako, who has this amazing restaurant. Before making Silence, I loved going to Janes Club or Le Baron, they had big parties.

Is there anyone you would like to see walk through the doors of Silenzio this year?

Good question. It would be nice to have David Lynch back. This could be a very nice surprise.

The interview is edited for length and clarity.