Cinematographer's debut film premieres
Cinematographer Marine Atlan is making her debut as a director with La Gradiva, her first feature film, which is set to premiere in theaters on Wednesday, October 21. The film follows a school trip to Pompeii and explores the emotions and contradictions of today's youth.Film's narrative and production style
The film is described as a journey that immerses viewers in the school trip to Pompeii of a French high school class. Marine Atlan interviewed many teenagers before conducting long workshops with the selected actors, most of whom are non-professionals, except Antonia Buresi, who plays the teacher accompanying them.Characters and thematic depth
The film features complex and ambiguous personalities, such as Suzanne, who is always in the background to observe, James, the insatiable seducer, or Toni, who is searching through the family story of her grandmother who lived in the region not long ago. In its second part, the film shifts into a dramaturgy, which still benefits from this realistic grounding reminiscent of Maurice Pialat.Atlan's background and previous work
Marine Atlan realized La Gradiva after previously being discovered at the Cannes Critics' Week and awarded among others at Deauville. She had already been awarded for her two short films: Les Amours vertes (2016) and Daniel fait face (2018).Collaborations and film details
She is also the director of photography for interesting films, notably L'Engloutie by Louise Hémon (2025) and Le Ravissement by Iris Kaltenbäck (2023). For this debut, she directed the photography of her film with a collaborator, in order to be more available for her actors. The film features Antonia Buresi, Colin Quignard, and Suzanne Gerin.
