After serving as minority partner for Spain’s Luster Media on the Toronto award-winning Spanish film They Will Be Dust, the Swiss venerable Arena Film is majority producing with Luster the period road movie The Indies (Les Indes), which will be sneakily screened as a work-in-progress at the ECAM Forum co-production market in Madrid from June 9-11.
Sister Swiss distribution companies have acquired the rights to the film, which was co-written and directed by first-time feature filmmakers Pauline Juliet and Nicolas Chapoulier.
A multi-hyphenate Swiss-French artist and filmmaker, Julie has gained international recognition for art installations and documentaries such as “The Way Beyond” and “Follow the Water,” which have been exhibited at festivals and art centers such as Thessaloniki’s Vision du Lille and the Georges Pompidou Center in Paris.
A director, visual artist and writer, Chapourier has a background in theater and is currently the artistic director of Les Three Points de Suspension.
“Sister Distribution is a regular supporter of Julia’s work,” said David Epiny, producer of “The Indies” and co-founder of Arena Films with Eugenia Mumenthaler. Passionate about film as an art form and the voices of singular filmmakers such as the acclaimed Milagros Mumenthaler (The Flow, The Idea of a Lake) and Elena López Riera (Water), the production duo were immediately hooked on the project when Julie and Chapourier first contacted them.
“We met at Locarno six or seven years ago. They pitched the idea to us and we were both impressed by their respective qualifications and unique vision for this period piece,” Chapourier told Variety.
Inspired by real events, The Indies is set in 17th century Europe, a time of scientific discovery and far-flung colonization. Two French soldiers and a young Spanish nobleman, Alejandro, are tasked with delivering a portrait of a Spanish princess to the young King of France, Louis XIV, in order to seal the fragile alliance between the two kings. The journey to Versailles is long and arduous, and the path back to civilization and the emerging modern world remains uncertain.
“The true story of Velázquez’s paintings of Spanish infants, which took months to get from point A to point B, caught my eye because they seemed so extraordinary and in stark contrast to the digital age of instant images,” said Julie, who is known for her interest in exploring how people connect with their environments through images, stories, rituals and knowledge.
“So this is not a character-driven film, but an image-driven film, where a single image, a portrait that is the focus of the story, is carried by three men. The era itself is not so important. It is just an excuse to think about the symbolism of the image, which image is important and who is responsible for it,” Julia explained.
Beyond reflecting this image, the film depicts a pivotal period in history and how people are influenced by their surroundings. “Here we are in a period of transition from the Middle Ages to the modern era, a time of colonization and conflict,” Julie continued.
“In the film, Alejandro claims that the development of trade routes will bring peace. But is this really the case? Are trade exchanges really accompanied by greater dialogue and understanding between nations? This question is very topical,” Julia points out, adding that the “Indies” in the title refers to the promise of a better world.
Inspired by the work of Kelly Reichardt and Lucrecia Martel, Julie and Chapoulier said they “had them in mind throughout filming” and made “bold, formal choices” such as a square format, long takes, and shooting entirely outdoors to maximize natural light “to emphasize the artistic weight of the film’s images.”
The filmmaking duo took similar care during the lengthy casting process. Newcomer Theo Urtubey, who plays Alejandro, was chosen for his “timeless beauty, a touch of femininity, in contrast to the rougher, more worldly appearance of the other two characters” played by Lazar Minungou and Raphael Thierry.
Julie paid tribute to the entire crew, especially cinematographer Sylvain Verde, who was nominated by Camerimage for his work on Pacifico Oscuro, which produced “a wonderful film despite extremely difficult filming conditions” during a five-week shoot in Spain, France and Switzerland.
Spain’s competitiveness
Commenting on the film’s acquisition for Switzerland, Sister Distribution’s Abel Daboin commented: “A historical study with such a contemporary and relevant perspective, where intelligence and elegance complement rather than contradict each other. This is precisely the heart of our vibrant line-up.”
The 2.6 million euro ($3 million) Swiss-Spanish film was co-produced with Swiss public broadcaster RTS and supported by Eurimage and ICEC, the Catalan Institute for Cultural Enterprise.
“Today, thanks to numerous filming incentives and national and regional support for ethnic minority co-productions, Spain is a more competitive and attractive country than, for example, France, a natural co-production partner for Switzerland. And if Spain has recently been rapidly emerging as a filming and production center, it is not by chance, but by political will,” emphasized Epiny.
In addition to promoting The Indies at ECAM Forum, a co-production market that Epiny and Mumenthal have been part of since day one, Epiny and Mumenthal will be participating in the Milagros Mumenthal retrospective co-organized by ECAM Forum and Film Madrid, which they say is “a great spot, with the organizers having a clear editorial policy and generosity!”
The pair are also preparing their next film, the Argentine-Swiss filmmaker’s follow-up to the award-winning “The Currents,” currently showing at arthouse venues in the United States through distribution by Kino Lorber.
“I can’t say much because it’s still in the early stages, but it’s going to be a romantic comedy,” Epiny said.
