Lunch with Les Vies de Lenny Wilson [The Lives of Lenny Wilson]

Interview with Aurélien Vernhes-Lermusiaux, director of Les Vies de Lenny Wilson [The Lives of Lenny Wilson]

 How did you come up with the idea for this short film?
The film came together very quickly. It wasn’t even meant to exist. I was meant to make a feature film that was pushed back, and with the intention of continuing to explore situations for future projects, my producer and I decided to make this film. I wanted to try my hand at a type of lightness, bring a touch of humor to my work while still dealing with dramatic themes. That was how we got the idea for a fusion of elements that I had been gathering for several weeks but which were generally quite far from the worlds that I had been developing up to that point. For example, going beyond a rural context to try and shoot a film in an urban setting, or again trying to create a pop atmosphere… Throughout the writing phase, I wanted to bring in elements, effects, tonalities that I had never experimented with. This film is almost a “mishap”.

 Why did you want want to make a musical with the introductory scene being sung?
Is Lenny Wilson completely fictional?
I wanted to make a musical film, but not a musical per se. I’ve always had issues with music in films to such an extent that I use it very sparingly in my own work. I’m actually quite wary of music since I often have the impression that it does not help the film. For Les Vies, I was sparked by the idea of working on a rhythmical balance among the different parts. The films tells the story of three characters and I wanted each one to have their own rhythmic and visual world. At the same time I did not totally want to isolate them from each other, but rather to create binders to reinforce the emotional side of the question. Quite soon, as I was writing, I had to decide on the singers and I thought it would be interesting to begin the film with a sequence that went opposite to a classical narrative. Beginning with music, creating a dynamic tempo that softened over the course of the film.
The character Lenny Wilson is completely fictional, even though after we shot the film, we realized that there was an American actor with the same name. Bob Wilson, who is mentioned in the film, is a theater director, also known as Robert Wilson and whose work I greatly admire. The second reference was fully intentional.

 What interested you in the scene of the characters dancing with garlands?
In the sequence shot that follows the film’s third sequence, I wanted to maintain the dreamlike touch surrounding the main characters, as I’ve done in other spots in the short film. Obviously, we had to go “somewhere else” without cutting and staying within the confines of the sequence shot, which was important for the section’s structure. The moment allows the character Julia to agree to look at the world around her differently. When she manages to become aware and to free herself from her own ills, she will be able to accept her future. The film’s dreamlike touches are there to make the everyday dramas less harsh.

 Why were you drawn to the theme of emotional lack?
In my different short films, I’ve often tackled the question of ruins, traces, memory, what we keep of people who have been with us at certain points of our lives. I wanted to push this idea further. Here, however, the lack is a double one, since the person who causes the emotional sadness for the two others is no longer there. I was really drawn to the he idea of a trio of people where the one who is missing is the actually cause of all the pain. How is each of them going to live through the lack and how will it be filled or accepted… That is how I began moving in the direction of this theme.

 Did you develop the film as stand-alone film or as part of a larger story? Are you thinking of delving deeper into the film or its themes in other films?
I made Les Vies de Lenny Wilson as a stand-alone film. When the film ends, it leaves new perspectives open for all the characters. I wanted to leave Boris and Julia’s futures open to our imagination. Since they found each other again, they may be able to begin grieving. I put the emphasis on “may be”…
Several of the film’s themes are already present in some of my earlier works. I think it would be difficult for me to stay away from them completely. That feeds my creative work, but also the very progression of my existence.

 If you’ve already been to the Clermont-Ferrand Festival, can you give us an anecdote? If it’s your first time, what are you expecting at the Festival?
Short films are a limitless vehicle for research and experimentation. The format provides a rare freedom to experiment with different, stimulating forms. In each of my short films, with varying degrees of success, I’ve always tried to work with very different formal and narrative considerations. I refuse to make films that look similar, in fact, I really enjoy working with new tools, formats and codes each time. I can safely say that whatever the future holds in store for me, I will definitely continue to make short films.
The audiences at Clermont-Ferrand will be the first to see Les Vies de Lenny Wilson. I’m not expecting anything in particular, just the hope that they will agree to join Julia, Boris and Elvis in their nocturnal, musical reverie. I also hope to meet some interesting people and filmmakers and give my senses a rush by watching many new, original films.

 Is your film being shown elsewhere?
The first showing of Les Vies de Lenny Wilson will be at the Clermont-Ferrand Festival. We just completed the film in December.

Les Vies de Lenny Wilson is part of National Competition F9.