Bird's Eye View

Lourdes: An Interview with Jessica Hausner

Lourdes Director: Jessica Hausner

Austrian filmmaker Jessica Hausner has previously toured international film festivals and wowed audiences and critics with her features Lovely Rita (2001) and Hotel (2004). We are excited to be presenting you with her new work at the BEV 2010 Festival; the mysterious and beautifully compelling Lourdes, about a young women with MS who travels to the French site of spiritual healing. The film was nominated for the Venice Film Festival’s top prize, the Golden Lion and stars French actor Sylvie Testud (La Vie En Rose).

BEV’s senior programmer Emily Seed spoke to Jessica from her home in Austria.

ES: Hi Jessica, and congratulations on the stunning Lourdes and the many awards it has won. We’re keen to know how you became interested in telling the story of a young female pilgrim to Lourdes.

Sylvie Testud plays Christine in Lourdes

JH: To start with I wanted to make a film about miracles, not necessarily about Lourdes. I became interested in those facing a seemingly tragic situation and the ambiguity of a miracle to them: the complex way in which you would want to be healed but know that the promise of everything turning out well can never be 100%. I conducted research into Lourdes, as the world’s most famous site of healing – and miracles. The site records all of its pilgrims’ stories and I was inspired by one in particular, that of an Austrian woman in her 50s – I didn’t use her story, but I gave her pragmatic attitude and strength to my main character Christine. Both women are not victims and not believers.

ES: The film gains extraordinary access to the interiors and rituals of Lourdes. Did the site officially authorise your shoot?

JH: Yes, this was necessary for the film. I had visited Lourdes a lot during my writing research for the project so the authorities got to know me, understood that I was making a serious film, and offered invaluable help. The site receives six million visitors a year, so we had to request they closed some of the venues when we wanted to film – the timing was pretty tight!

ES: Sylvie Testud plays Mômone, my favourite character in La Vie En Rose: Piaf’s best friend, both central to Piaf’s early years yet peripheral to the long story. Is that where you first saw her or did you know her before that film?

Wheelchair bound Christine confesses she went to Lourdes not for faith but because "it's the only way I get out"

JH: I knew her before; she’s made some brilliant films.

ES: In Lourdes the dialogue is minimal; we are pulled in and mesmerized by Christine’s physical presence from the start.

JH: For me the most important feature of films is their visual quality – the side that you can’t put into words. The framing, the character and the rhythm is what tells the story as much as the dialogue. Dialogue is part of the narrative and of characterisation. A character’s weak sides can be shown by shortness and superficiality in dialogue, for example.

ES: What kind of audiences has Lourdes attracted so far? Is it a film for Christians?

JH: So far the film has been released in Austria and Norway. While Austria is mostly Catholic, Norway has a strong Protestant tradition. They are both quite religious countries, and audience reaction have been very good. The audiences are very mixed – not dominantly Christian.

ES: Do you believe in miracles?

JH: I believe that inexplicable healings do exist, and not always in a spiritual context. During my research I spoke to many doctors, who told me that phenomenal healings happen every day in hospitals, which fascinates me. I don’t believe in religious miracles, however.

The group pilgrimage in search of a miracle healing

ES: Are you going with your film to Sundance next  month?

JH: The film is screening there but I can’t accompany it as i’m having a baby pretty soon.

ES: Congratulations from Birds Eye View on both Lourdes and your forthcoming baby, and thank you for talking to us!

We are screening Lourdes as part of our festival at ICA Cinema 1 on  Tue March 9 at 6.15pm & Curzon Soho on Sat March 6.  Click here for details.