Writer-director Céline Sciamma’s Petite Maman departs from the filmmaker’s last two feature-length directorial efforts in its comparative modesty. With none of the overt social messaging of Girlhood or the grand romance of Portrait of a Lady on Fire, Sciamma’s precisely composed images and muted dialogue serve a more intimate story about the longing to connect with one’s mother outside the bounds of the parent-offspring relationship.
Petite Maman indulges the same kind of fantasy as Robert Zemeckis’s Back to the Future, answering the question of what it would be like to meet our parents at our own age—though it’s not overly concerned with temporal paradoxes or a high-stakes race to ensure one’s genesis. Rather, Sciamma’s film is contemplative and cool almost to a fault, emphasizing the simple acts of connecting with and parting from people we care about, and the rueful inevitability of time’s passing.
Petite Maman indulges the same kind of fantasy as Robert Zemeckis’s Back to the Future, answering the question of what it would be like to meet our parents at our own age—though it’s not overly concerned with temporal paradoxes or a high-stakes race to ensure one’s genesis. Rather, Sciamma’s film is contemplative and cool almost to a fault, emphasizing the simple acts of connecting with and parting from people we care about, and the rueful inevitability of time’s passing.
- 5/12/2023
- by Pat Brown
- Slant Magazine
The leaves are withering, the air is turning crisp, and film festival season is well underway — which means even more foreign-language movies to receive raves on the fall awards circuit before getting promptly buried on a streamer. But don't let that happen to "Athena," a staggering French drama that is in danger of falling into the Netflix abyss, crowded out by your "Gray Men" or "Kissing Booth's." Or check out one of last year's forgotten festival darlings in Céline Sciamma's "Petite Maman." And because spooky season is now here, we have a horror anime classic making their streaming debuts, alongside a cyberpunk anime classic. Plus, "Little Women," but make it crime?
Let's fire up those subtitles and get streaming.
Athena – Netflix
Country: France
Genre: Action drama
Director: Romain Gavras
Cast: Dali Benssalah, Sami Slimane, Anthony Bajon, Ouassini Embarek, Alexis Manenti.
"Athena" is a Molotov cocktail of a movie: incendiary,...
Let's fire up those subtitles and get streaming.
Athena – Netflix
Country: France
Genre: Action drama
Director: Romain Gavras
Cast: Dali Benssalah, Sami Slimane, Anthony Bajon, Ouassini Embarek, Alexis Manenti.
"Athena" is a Molotov cocktail of a movie: incendiary,...
- 9/27/2022
- by Hoai-Tran Bui
- Slash Film
Petite Maman Review — Petite Maman (2021) Film Review, a movie written and directed by Celine Sciamma and starring Josephine Sanz, Gabrielle Sanz, Nina Meurisse, Stephane Varupenne, Margot Abascal, Flores Cardo, Josee Schuller, Guylene Pean and Masoud Tosifyan. French director Celine Sciamma is most noted for the remarkable 2019 film, Portrait of a Lady on [...]
Continue reading: Film Review: Petite Maman (2021): Celine Sciamma’s Film is an Artistically Satisfying Portrait of Youth...
Continue reading: Film Review: Petite Maman (2021): Celine Sciamma’s Film is an Artistically Satisfying Portrait of Youth...
- 5/7/2022
- by Thomas Duffy
- Film-Book
There are few things in contemporary cinema as pleasurable as witnessing Céline Sciamma’s fascination with childhood. Although she doesn’t technically make films for children (although she did co-write the screenplay for My Life as a Courgette) her stories often are told from their point of view. Whether it’s young Parisian women trying to find their place in the world in Girlhood, or the child in Tomboy discovering there is more to gender than they’ve been asked to believe, Sciamma’s way of seeing the world negotiates who we were and what we can become with utter wonder. Even at the end of Portrait of a Lady on Fire, it’s the silent gaze of a child in a painting that ultimately highlights the film’s unrelenting power.
In Petite Maman, Sciamma explores the meaning of grief and how loss can strangely lead to wondrous beginnings. Not that her films,...
In Petite Maman, Sciamma explores the meaning of grief and how loss can strangely lead to wondrous beginnings. Not that her films,...
- 4/26/2022
- by Jose Solís
- The Film Stage
Sony Pictures Classics art heist caper The Duke, Neon’s tender Petite Maman, and Charlotte from Good Deed Films, an animated biopic with mature themes, open an eclectic specialty weekend ready to draw older crowds if they’re ready to return.
Younger demos are back when they like the pic, as per A24s Everything Everywhere All At Once. Families also, based on Sonic The Hedgehog 2. With CinemaCon opening Monday to set the theatrical table for the rest of 2022 and beyond, NATO chief John Fithian predicts the reluctance of the 35 to 40+ crowd is “definitely going to change.”
“I think the growth is going to come as much from smaller budget films as from blockbusters,” he tells Deadline ahead of the first full-blown confab of exhibitors, studios and indie distributors since Covid. Audiences that have stayed the most at home are “the most excited about coming back out,” he said.
Younger demos are back when they like the pic, as per A24s Everything Everywhere All At Once. Families also, based on Sonic The Hedgehog 2. With CinemaCon opening Monday to set the theatrical table for the rest of 2022 and beyond, NATO chief John Fithian predicts the reluctance of the 35 to 40+ crowd is “definitely going to change.”
“I think the growth is going to come as much from smaller budget films as from blockbusters,” he tells Deadline ahead of the first full-blown confab of exhibitors, studios and indie distributors since Covid. Audiences that have stayed the most at home are “the most excited about coming back out,” he said.
- 4/22/2022
- by Jill Goldsmith
- Deadline Film + TV
"Petite Maman" is a small film, in more ways than one. It's got a slight runtime that barely clocks in at over an hour, and it's got an even slighter story — at least on the surface.
Directed by Céline Sciamma, "Petite Maman" follows an 8-year-old girl named Nelly (Josephine Sanz) who, while accompanying her mom to clean out her recently-passed grandmother's house, wanders through a nearby wood that takes her back in time. There, she meets her mother at her age, and the two become instant playmates. It's more of a fable than a sci-fi film,...
The post Petite Maman Director Céline Sciamma on Filming in Her Hometown and Telling Smaller Stories [Interview] appeared first on /Film.
Directed by Céline Sciamma, "Petite Maman" follows an 8-year-old girl named Nelly (Josephine Sanz) who, while accompanying her mom to clean out her recently-passed grandmother's house, wanders through a nearby wood that takes her back in time. There, she meets her mother at her age, and the two become instant playmates. It's more of a fable than a sci-fi film,...
The post Petite Maman Director Céline Sciamma on Filming in Her Hometown and Telling Smaller Stories [Interview] appeared first on /Film.
- 4/21/2022
- by Hoai-Tran Bui
- Slash Film
“Petite Maman” may run a mere 72 minutes, but its artistry is immense. For her first film since the luminous period romance “Portrait of a Lady on Fire” — which only ran two hours but felt both visually and emotionally epic — the inimitable French filmmaker Céline Sciamma crafted something a little more, well, petite. A slightly magical fable about mothers and children, the themes in “Petite Maman” will be familiar to longtime admirers of Sciamma’s work, which began with the César Award-nominated “Water Lilies” (2007) and includes the best queer childhood film ever made, “Tomboy” (2011).
The film’s concept, which imagines if a young girl could befriend her mother when she was her age, is the first time Sciamma has dabbled in anything verging on magical realism. Her work is always marked by a balance of simplicity and complexity; emotionally ripe scenarios are elegantly distilled and planted firmly in one or two characters’ perspectives.
The film’s concept, which imagines if a young girl could befriend her mother when she was her age, is the first time Sciamma has dabbled in anything verging on magical realism. Her work is always marked by a balance of simplicity and complexity; emotionally ripe scenarios are elegantly distilled and planted firmly in one or two characters’ perspectives.
- 4/20/2022
- by Jude Dry
- Indiewire
There is what you might call a “spoiler” in the title of Céline Sciamma’s new movie, a key to unlocking her look at childhood that’s hiding in plain sight. The French filmmaker’s follow-up to Portrait of a Lady on Fire begins not with love, but with death: An eight-year-old named Nelly (Joséphine Sanz) has just lost her elderly grandmother. Her mom (Nina Meurisse) is packing up everything in the house she grew up in, located on the edge of a forest. Dad (Stéphane Varupenne) is helping out the best he can.
- 4/19/2022
- by David Fear
- Rollingstone.com
Petite Maman (Little Mom) Neon Reviewed for Shockya.com & BigAppleReviews.net, linked from Rotten Tomatoes by Harvey Karten Director: Céline Sciamma Screenwriter: Céline Scimma Cast: Joséphine Sanz, Gabrielle Sanz, Nina Meurisse, Stéphane Varupenne, Margot Abascal Screened at: Critics’ link, NYC, 4/7/22 Opens: April 22, 2022 How much do you know about your parents’ childhoods? Are you […]
The post Petite Maman (Little Mom) Movie Review appeared first on Shockya.com.
The post Petite Maman (Little Mom) Movie Review appeared first on Shockya.com.
- 4/17/2022
- by Harvey Karten
- ShockYa
The first five Friday month of 2022 has arrived and studios are bringing their heavy hitters like Morbius, Sonic the Hedgehog 2, Fantastic Beasts: The Secrets of Dumbledore, and The Bad Guys to utilize that extra time. That kind of even spacing hopefully means there should still be plenty of screens to house the littler fare as well.
So, keep the creative imagery coming as full-scale competition for eyeballs is seemingly back for good. The “Theatrical Only” text has become a permanent fixture on marketing materials to manufacture an air of “quality” for Hollywood blockbusters while other independent shingles have refused to bat an eye when going day and date with digital too. More forums mean more opportunity. More opportunity means more titles. It’s never been more crucial to stand out from the pack.
Just in frame
I love the excitement bursting from the one-sheet for Hit the Road. The...
So, keep the creative imagery coming as full-scale competition for eyeballs is seemingly back for good. The “Theatrical Only” text has become a permanent fixture on marketing materials to manufacture an air of “quality” for Hollywood blockbusters while other independent shingles have refused to bat an eye when going day and date with digital too. More forums mean more opportunity. More opportunity means more titles. It’s never been more crucial to stand out from the pack.
Just in frame
I love the excitement bursting from the one-sheet for Hit the Road. The...
- 4/1/2022
- by Jared Mobarak
- The Film Stage
"Grab a tissue and prepare your heart." Neon has revealed an official US trailer for Petite Maman, the beloved film from Portrait of a Lady on Fire director Céline Sciamma. This first premiered at the 2021 Berlin Film Festival last year, and played at the New York Film Festival and other fests. The title translates to Little Mom, which is a reference to the film's plot and what happens with a young girl. Nelly has just lost her grandmother and is helping her parents clean out her mother's childhood home. One day her mother disappears without explanation. She explores the house and the surrounding woods, and meets another girl her exact same age. The film stars Joséphine Sanz + Gabrielle Sanz, with Nina Meurisse, Stéphane Varupenne, and Margot Abascal. It's only 72 minutes long, but it's a really lovely film that you will leave you happy no matter what. After all this time,...
- 3/31/2022
- by Alex Billington
- firstshowing.net
Céline Sciamma's Petite Maman is showing exclusively on Mubi in many countries starting February 18, 2022 in the series Luminaries. Her films are also showing as part of the series Young Hearts Run Free: Céline Sciamma.Petite MamanOur actions define us. In the second scene of Céline Sciamma’s Portrait of a Lady on Fire (2019), the film’s protagonist, the painter Marianne (Noémie Merlant), is traveling on a boat rowed by a dozen oarsmen, when a wooden crate containing her easel is jolted into the sea. Marianne considers the situation for a few seconds, then kicks off her shoes, jumps into the cold, choppy waters in her gown and traveling coat, and swims towards her prize possession. We immediately pick up her resilience, romanticism, and independence of spirit. This scene, and another shortly afterwards where a naked Marianne smokes a pipe as she warms herself up from her efforts before a fire,...
- 2/18/2022
- MUBI
Céline Sciamma’s beautiful fairytale about a girl who meets her mother as a child in the woods is an artistic masterstroke
Best films of 2021: the listMore on the best culture of 2021
Céline Sciamma’s beautiful fairytale reverie is occasioned by the dual mysteries of memory and the future: simple, elegant and very moving. Joséphine Sanz plays Nelly, the eight-year-old daughter of Marion (Nina Meurisse); Marion’s mother has just died in a care home. Marion and her partner (Stéphane Varupenne) take Nelly on a difficult journey to her late mother’s home, where she grew up, and the memories come flooding back – particularly that of a secret hut she built in the woods adjoining the house. Marion is overwhelmed with grief and leaves Nelly alone with her dad.
Playing in the woods she comes across what appears to be a half-finished hut in a clearing. A girl waves happily to her,...
Best films of 2021: the listMore on the best culture of 2021
Céline Sciamma’s beautiful fairytale reverie is occasioned by the dual mysteries of memory and the future: simple, elegant and very moving. Joséphine Sanz plays Nelly, the eight-year-old daughter of Marion (Nina Meurisse); Marion’s mother has just died in a care home. Marion and her partner (Stéphane Varupenne) take Nelly on a difficult journey to her late mother’s home, where she grew up, and the memories come flooding back – particularly that of a secret hut she built in the woods adjoining the house. Marion is overwhelmed with grief and leaves Nelly alone with her dad.
Playing in the woods she comes across what appears to be a half-finished hut in a clearing. A girl waves happily to her,...
- 12/15/2021
- by Peter Bradshaw
- The Guardian - Film News
"I've made a friend, I think." Mubi in the UK has revealed another official UK trailer for the beloved film Petite Maman, the latest feature from Portrait of a Lady on Fire director Céline Sciamma. This initially premiered at the Berlin Film Festival earlier this year, and will play at the New York Film Festival next. The title translates to Little Mom, which is a reference to the film's plot and what happens with a young girl who meets another young girl in the woods one day. Nelly has just lost her grandmother and is helping her parents clean out her mother's childhood home. One day her mother disappears without explanation. She explores the house and the surrounding woods, and meets another girl her exact same age. Petite Maman stars Joséphine Sanz and Gabrielle Sanz, with Nina Meurisse, Stéphane Varupenne, and Margot Abascal. It's only 72 minutes long, but there's so much to this film.
- 8/25/2021
- by Alex Billington
- firstshowing.net
Time to meet Nelly and Marion... Pyramide Films in France has unveiled the first official trailer for the film Petite Maman, the latest from Portrait of a Lady on Fire director Céline Sciamma. The title translates directly to Little Mom, which is a reference to the film's plot and what happens with a young girl who meets another young girl in the woods one day. Nelly has just lost her grandmother and is helping her parents clean out her mother's childhood home. One day her mother disappears without explanation. She explores the house and the surrounding woods, and meets a girl her same age building a treehouse. Petite Maman stars Joséphine Sanz and Gabrielle Sanz, with Nina Meurisse, Stéphane Varupenne, and Margot Abascal. This just premiered a few months ago at the Berlin Film Festival, and it's opening in France this June, though there's still no US opening set yet.
- 5/13/2021
- by Alex Billington
- firstshowing.net
Following up her universally acclaimed Portrait of a Lady on Fire, Céline Sciamma was able to get a film off the ground and completed during the pandemic. Petite Maman, starring Joséphine Sanz, Gabrielle Sanz, Stéphane Varupenne, Nina Meurisse, and Margo Abascal, follows a young girl who has just lost her grandmother, then discovers a girl her own age in the woods. Following a Berlinale premiere, the film will arrive in France next month and the first international trailer has landed. Neon will also reteam with the director for a U.S. release, but a date hasn’t been confirmed yet.
Orla Smith said in our Berlinale review, “After the ambitious and wildly popular Portrait of a Lady on Fire shot Céline Sciamma into the arthouse stratosphere, she has returned with her fifth feature, Petite Maman, a warm and contained film whose scale is more akin to Tomboy. The mighty hype...
Orla Smith said in our Berlinale review, “After the ambitious and wildly popular Portrait of a Lady on Fire shot Céline Sciamma into the arthouse stratosphere, she has returned with her fifth feature, Petite Maman, a warm and contained film whose scale is more akin to Tomboy. The mighty hype...
- 5/13/2021
- by Jordan Raup
- The Film Stage
Celine Sciamma’s Berlinale competition title “Petite Maman” has been sold by MK2 Films around the world with some bidding wars in multiple territories.
The critically acclaimed film, which marks Sciamma’s follow-up to “Portrait of a Lady on Fire,” has been sold to Alamode (Germany), Culture (Japan), Challan (South Korea) Sun (Latin America), Avalon (Spain), Madman (Australia/New Zealand), Red Cape (Israel), Cinéart (Benelux), Cineworx (Switzerland), Angel (Denmark), Folkets Bio (Sweden), Arthaus (Norway), Swallow Wings (Taiwan), Russian World Vision (Cis), New Horizons (Poland), Weirdwave (Greece), Midas (Portugal) and Demiurg (Ex-Yugoslavia).
“Petite Maman” was bought by Neon for North America and Mubi for the U.K. and Turkey during the virtual Berlin Film Festival. MK2 Films is currently negotiating further sales.
Described as a chamber piece, a ghost story and a fairy tale, “Petite Maman” follows Nelly, an 8-year-old girl who has just lost her beloved grandmother and is helping...
The critically acclaimed film, which marks Sciamma’s follow-up to “Portrait of a Lady on Fire,” has been sold to Alamode (Germany), Culture (Japan), Challan (South Korea) Sun (Latin America), Avalon (Spain), Madman (Australia/New Zealand), Red Cape (Israel), Cinéart (Benelux), Cineworx (Switzerland), Angel (Denmark), Folkets Bio (Sweden), Arthaus (Norway), Swallow Wings (Taiwan), Russian World Vision (Cis), New Horizons (Poland), Weirdwave (Greece), Midas (Portugal) and Demiurg (Ex-Yugoslavia).
“Petite Maman” was bought by Neon for North America and Mubi for the U.K. and Turkey during the virtual Berlin Film Festival. MK2 Films is currently negotiating further sales.
Described as a chamber piece, a ghost story and a fairy tale, “Petite Maman” follows Nelly, an 8-year-old girl who has just lost her beloved grandmother and is helping...
- 3/16/2021
- by Elsa Keslassy
- Variety Film + TV
Petite Maman had its world premiere at last week’s online Berlin Film Festival.
Mubi has acquired all UK-Ireland rights to Céline Sciamma’s Petite Maman, which had its world premiere at last week’s online Berlin Film Festival.
The distributor has also acquired rights on the film for Turkey, in deals done with international sales agent mk2.
The film will be released theatrically in all territories, Mubi has confirmed to Screen.
Petite Maman centres on eight-year-old Nelly, who has just lost her grandmother and is helping clean out her mother’s childhood home, when she strikes up a relationship...
Mubi has acquired all UK-Ireland rights to Céline Sciamma’s Petite Maman, which had its world premiere at last week’s online Berlin Film Festival.
The distributor has also acquired rights on the film for Turkey, in deals done with international sales agent mk2.
The film will be released theatrically in all territories, Mubi has confirmed to Screen.
Petite Maman centres on eight-year-old Nelly, who has just lost her grandmother and is helping clean out her mother’s childhood home, when she strikes up a relationship...
- 3/9/2021
- by Ben Dalton
- ScreenDaily
Arthouse streamer and distributor Mubi has acquired all rights for Céline Sciamma’s well-received Berlin Film Festival title Petite Maman for the UK, Ireland and Turkey.
Sciamma’s follow-up to Cannes hit Portrait of a Lady on Fire, tells the story of 8-year-old Nelly who has just lost her beloved grandmother and is helping her parents clean out her mother’s childhood home. She explores the house and the surrounding woods where her mother, Marion, used to play and built the treehouse she’s heard so much about. One day her mother abruptly leaves and Nelly meets a girl her own age, named Marion, in the woods building a treehouse.
You can check out review for the film here.
Written and directed by festival favourite Sciamma, the film was shot by cinematographer Claire Mathon, Sciamma’s frequent collaborator, and produced by Bénédicte Couvreur of Lilies Films.
Cast includes Gabrielle Sanz,...
Sciamma’s follow-up to Cannes hit Portrait of a Lady on Fire, tells the story of 8-year-old Nelly who has just lost her beloved grandmother and is helping her parents clean out her mother’s childhood home. She explores the house and the surrounding woods where her mother, Marion, used to play and built the treehouse she’s heard so much about. One day her mother abruptly leaves and Nelly meets a girl her own age, named Marion, in the woods building a treehouse.
You can check out review for the film here.
Written and directed by festival favourite Sciamma, the film was shot by cinematographer Claire Mathon, Sciamma’s frequent collaborator, and produced by Bénédicte Couvreur of Lilies Films.
Cast includes Gabrielle Sanz,...
- 3/9/2021
- by Andreas Wiseman
- Deadline Film + TV
A little over a year ago, Céline Sciamma was coming off a hectic year. Her fourth feature, the acclaimed romance “Portrait of a Lady on Fire,” became a breakout hit after its 2019 Cannes debut. Though the movie wasn’t selected by France as its Oscar submission, “Portrait” scored nine nominations from the César Awards. Sciamma joined her star (and ex-partner) Adele Haenel in a highly-publicized decision to walk out of the ceremony after the filmmaker lost Best Director to Roman Polanski.
It was late February 2020 and Sciamma, who has long pushed back on the sexist, patriarchal state of the French film industry, wanted to make a big statement. These days, as she gets on the phone from Paris to discuss her new movie, it’s the last thing she wants to talk about.
“I don’t know what to say,” she said. “I’ve been far away from that for...
It was late February 2020 and Sciamma, who has long pushed back on the sexist, patriarchal state of the French film industry, wanted to make a big statement. These days, as she gets on the phone from Paris to discuss her new movie, it’s the last thing she wants to talk about.
“I don’t know what to say,” she said. “I’ve been far away from that for...
- 3/5/2021
- by Eric Kohn
- Indiewire
Anyone expecting another sweeping and passionate period piece from the director of “Portrait of a Lady on Fire” should begin recalibrating their expectations for Céline Sciamma’s follow-up, “Petite Maman.”
Intimately focused on a handful of characters, with a single fantastical event setting up its direct narrative through-line, this feature plays like a novella, or a short film, or both — it’s the kind of piece that was once the bread-and-butter of PBS’ “American Playhouse” anthology series. And while “Petite Maman” is a vastly different from than “Portrait,” it furthers writer-director Sciamma’s reputation as a storyteller with a keen understanding of character and human emotion.
The film opens with young Nelly (Joséphine Sanz) bidding farewell to the residents of a nursing home where her namesake grandmother has just died. This passing is devastating for Nelly’s mother, Marion (Nina Meurisse), a woman given to moments of melancholy even under normal circumstances.
Intimately focused on a handful of characters, with a single fantastical event setting up its direct narrative through-line, this feature plays like a novella, or a short film, or both — it’s the kind of piece that was once the bread-and-butter of PBS’ “American Playhouse” anthology series. And while “Petite Maman” is a vastly different from than “Portrait,” it furthers writer-director Sciamma’s reputation as a storyteller with a keen understanding of character and human emotion.
The film opens with young Nelly (Joséphine Sanz) bidding farewell to the residents of a nursing home where her namesake grandmother has just died. This passing is devastating for Nelly’s mother, Marion (Nina Meurisse), a woman given to moments of melancholy even under normal circumstances.
- 3/4/2021
- by Alonso Duralde
- The Wrap
The two most mature and emotionally insightful seven-year-old girls you’ve ever encountered in your life are the subjects of Petite Maman. Magnetically attentive to the serious “things of life,” as the French put it, Céline Sciamma’s 72-minute study of an intense brief friendship between two girls of extraordinary similar looks prioritizes insight and emotional awareness over any artificial plot constructs. The result is a piercingly satisfying chamber drama with a lovely intimate feel.
After her great international success two years ago with Portrait Of A Lady On Fire, Sciamma was in a position to do anything she pleased, and the new film is arresting and unusual in nearly every way. The two girls in question seem half-curious kids/half-mature adults, so intently do they address matters that count in the very little time they know they’ll have together.
Both girls’ families are in stressful straits. The grandmother...
After her great international success two years ago with Portrait Of A Lady On Fire, Sciamma was in a position to do anything she pleased, and the new film is arresting and unusual in nearly every way. The two girls in question seem half-curious kids/half-mature adults, so intently do they address matters that count in the very little time they know they’ll have together.
Both girls’ families are in stressful straits. The grandmother...
- 3/3/2021
- by Todd McCarthy
- Deadline Film + TV
After the ambitious and wildly popular Portrait of a Lady on Fire shot Céline Sciamma into the arthouse stratosphere, she has returned with her fifth feature, Petite Maman, a warm and contained film whose scale is more akin to Tomboy. The mighty hype from Sciamma fans anticipating the film’s Berlinale premiere may be too much to bear for this delicate, low-key film. Of course it’s as impeccably directed and carefully structured as we’ve come to expect from Sciamma. But it’s more of a slow simmer than Portrait’s fiery blaze. Beware instantaneous hot takes: this is a modest work, one to sit with and chew over, one to look back on fondly after letting it percolate.
With Petite Maman, Sciamma returns to the topic of her first three features—childhood—now with one eye on the adult characters. We meet eight-year-old Nelly (Joséphine Sanz) in the hospital,...
With Petite Maman, Sciamma returns to the topic of her first three features—childhood—now with one eye on the adult characters. We meet eight-year-old Nelly (Joséphine Sanz) in the hospital,...
- 3/3/2021
- by Orla Smith
- The Film Stage
Neon has scooped up North American rights to Céline Sciamma’s sixth feature directorial Petite Maman, bringing the Oscar-winning film studio back in business with the French filmmaker behind 2019’s award-winning pic Portrait of a Lady on Fire. Already there is great word of mouth brewing from critics on Sciamma’s new title out of its world premiere at the Berlinale.
The drama stars sisters Joséphine Sanz and Gabrielle Sanz, with Nina Meurisse, Stéphane Varupenne and Margot Abascal. In Pete Maman, 8-year-old Nelly has just lost her beloved grandmother and is helping her parents clean out her mother’s childhood home. She explores the house and the surrounding woods where her mom, Marion, used to play and built the treehouse she’s heard so much about. One day her mother abruptly leaves. That’s when Nelly meets a girl her own age in the woods building a treehouse. Her name is Marion.
The drama stars sisters Joséphine Sanz and Gabrielle Sanz, with Nina Meurisse, Stéphane Varupenne and Margot Abascal. In Pete Maman, 8-year-old Nelly has just lost her beloved grandmother and is helping her parents clean out her mother’s childhood home. She explores the house and the surrounding woods where her mom, Marion, used to play and built the treehouse she’s heard so much about. One day her mother abruptly leaves. That’s when Nelly meets a girl her own age in the woods building a treehouse. Her name is Marion.
- 3/3/2021
- by Anthony D'Alessandro
- Deadline Film + TV
Neon has acquired North American rights to Céline Sciamma’s latest feature, “Petite Maman,” following its premiere at the Berlin Film Festival.
The sale reunites Sciamma with Neon, the New York-based independent studio that released her acclaimed drama “Portrait of a Lady on Fire.”
Written and directed by Sciamma, “Petite Maman” follows 8-year-old Nelly, who loses her beloved grandmother and goes to help her parents clean out her mother’s childhood home. She explores the house and the surrounding woods where her mom, Marion, used to play and build the treehouse she’s heard so much about. One day, her mother abruptly leaves. That’s when Nelly meets a girl her own age in the woods building a treehouse. Her name is Marion.
It stars sisters Joséphine and Gabrielle Sanz, as well as Nina Meurisse, Stéphane Varupenne and Margot Abascal.
Variety’s chief film critic Peter Debruge praised the film,...
The sale reunites Sciamma with Neon, the New York-based independent studio that released her acclaimed drama “Portrait of a Lady on Fire.”
Written and directed by Sciamma, “Petite Maman” follows 8-year-old Nelly, who loses her beloved grandmother and goes to help her parents clean out her mother’s childhood home. She explores the house and the surrounding woods where her mom, Marion, used to play and build the treehouse she’s heard so much about. One day, her mother abruptly leaves. That’s when Nelly meets a girl her own age in the woods building a treehouse. Her name is Marion.
It stars sisters Joséphine and Gabrielle Sanz, as well as Nina Meurisse, Stéphane Varupenne and Margot Abascal.
Variety’s chief film critic Peter Debruge praised the film,...
- 3/3/2021
- by Rebecca Rubin
- Variety Film + TV
Sisters Joséphine Sanz and Gabrielle Sanz star.
Neon is reuniting with Celine Sciamma and has acquired North American rights from mk2 to Berlin competition selection Petite Maman.
Sisters Joséphine Sanz and Gabrielle Sanz star in the drama about a young child mourning the loss of her grandmother who encounters a girl of her age in the woods.
‘Petite Maman’: Berlin Review
Nina Meurisse, Stéphane Varupenne and Margot Abascal round out the key cast. Bénédicte Couvreur of Lilies Films produced.
Jeff Deutchman negotiated the deal for Neon with Fionnuala Jamison of mk2 who are handling international sales.
Neon released Sciamma...
Neon is reuniting with Celine Sciamma and has acquired North American rights from mk2 to Berlin competition selection Petite Maman.
Sisters Joséphine Sanz and Gabrielle Sanz star in the drama about a young child mourning the loss of her grandmother who encounters a girl of her age in the woods.
‘Petite Maman’: Berlin Review
Nina Meurisse, Stéphane Varupenne and Margot Abascal round out the key cast. Bénédicte Couvreur of Lilies Films produced.
Jeff Deutchman negotiated the deal for Neon with Fionnuala Jamison of mk2 who are handling international sales.
Neon released Sciamma...
- 3/3/2021
- by Jeremy Kay
- ScreenDaily
Eight-year-old Nelly (Joséphine Sanz) sits in the backseat of her mother’s car outside of the nursing home where her beloved grandmother has just died, and watches through the window as her young parents (Nina Meurisse and Stéphane Varupenne) share a tender embrace. The half-quizzical look on Nelly’s face suggests that she hasn’t seen them hug in a while — that perhaps this moment is doubly charged. She wonders what they mean to each other, and what it feels like to lose someone forever, and whether her mother ever sat alone in a car on a gray fall afternoon and watched as her mother was consoled over her mother’s death. Nelly understands that her mom didn’t become 31 without being eight along the way, but why is that so hard to imagine? It’s like looking at a bird and trying to picture when it was a dinosaur.
- 3/3/2021
- by David Ehrlich
- Indiewire
After working together on the domestic release of Portrait of a Lady on Fire, Neon has acquired the North American rights to Celine Sciamma’s Petite Maman.
Petite Maman, which premiered at Berlinale, is a time travel story that follows 8-year-old Nelly, who has just lost her beloved grandmother and is helping her parents clean out the childhood home of her mother, Marion. While exploring the surrounding woods, she meets a girl her own age, who looks exactly like her and is named Marion.
Sisters Joséphine Sanz and Gabrielle Sanz star in the feature, with Nina Meurisse, Stéphane Varupenne and Margot Abascal.
Bénédicte Couvreur ...
Petite Maman, which premiered at Berlinale, is a time travel story that follows 8-year-old Nelly, who has just lost her beloved grandmother and is helping her parents clean out the childhood home of her mother, Marion. While exploring the surrounding woods, she meets a girl her own age, who looks exactly like her and is named Marion.
Sisters Joséphine Sanz and Gabrielle Sanz star in the feature, with Nina Meurisse, Stéphane Varupenne and Margot Abascal.
Bénédicte Couvreur ...
After working together on the domestic release of Portrait of a Lady on Fire, Neon has acquired the North American rights to Céline Sciamma’s Petite Maman.
Petite Maman, which premiered at Berlinale, is a time-travel story that follows 8-year-old Nelly, who has just lost her beloved grandmother and is helping her parents clean out the childhood home of her mother, Marion. While exploring the surrounding woods, she meets a girl her own age, who looks exactly like her and is named Marion.
Sisters Joséphine Sanz and Gabrielle Sanz star in the feature, with Nina Meurisse, Stéphane Varupenne and Margot Abascal.
Bénédicte Couvreur prodcued ...
Petite Maman, which premiered at Berlinale, is a time-travel story that follows 8-year-old Nelly, who has just lost her beloved grandmother and is helping her parents clean out the childhood home of her mother, Marion. While exploring the surrounding woods, she meets a girl her own age, who looks exactly like her and is named Marion.
Sisters Joséphine Sanz and Gabrielle Sanz star in the feature, with Nina Meurisse, Stéphane Varupenne and Margot Abascal.
Bénédicte Couvreur prodcued ...
A girl meets her mother as a child in the woods in a moving jewel of a film about memory, friendship and kin
Céline Sciamma’s beautiful fairytale reverie is occasioned by the dual mysteries of memory and the future: simple, elegant and very moving. I fell instantly under its spell, and found myself thinking of classic English tales such as Tom’s Midnight Garden by Philippa Pearce, or The Child in Time by Ian McEwan. And there is an extra-textual pleasure in wondering exactly what its child stars thought about it during filming – and what they think about it now.
Joséphine Sanz plays Nelly, the eight-year-old daughter of Marion (Nina Meurisse). The latter is under enormous stress. Marion’s mother has just died in a care home, from long-term complications of a hereditary bone disorder, which Marion herself had to avoid with a painful operation when she was about Nelly’s age.
Céline Sciamma’s beautiful fairytale reverie is occasioned by the dual mysteries of memory and the future: simple, elegant and very moving. I fell instantly under its spell, and found myself thinking of classic English tales such as Tom’s Midnight Garden by Philippa Pearce, or The Child in Time by Ian McEwan. And there is an extra-textual pleasure in wondering exactly what its child stars thought about it during filming – and what they think about it now.
Joséphine Sanz plays Nelly, the eight-year-old daughter of Marion (Nina Meurisse). The latter is under enormous stress. Marion’s mother has just died in a care home, from long-term complications of a hereditary bone disorder, which Marion herself had to avoid with a painful operation when she was about Nelly’s age.
- 3/3/2021
- by Peter Bradshaw
- The Guardian - Film News
One of the best surprises of the Berlinale 2021 lineup is that the newest film from Céline Sciamma––marking her fifth feature and first since her widely acclaimed Portrait of a Lady on Fire––is completed after shooting only a few months ago. Details have been sparse when it came to Petite Maman, but now the festival has unveiled a full synopsis, while also revealing a runtime of only 72 minutes.
Starring Joséphine Sanz, Gabrielle Sanz, Nina Meurisse, Stéphane Varupenne, and Margot Abascal, the film will find Sciamma returning to themes of adolescence, which she explored in different facets in Water Lillies, Tomboy, and Girlhood. Check out the synopsis below via Berlinale’s official site.
Eight-year-old Nelly has just lost her beloved grandmother and is helping her parents clean out her mother’s childhood home. She explores the house and the surrounding woods where her mum, Marion, used to play and where...
Starring Joséphine Sanz, Gabrielle Sanz, Nina Meurisse, Stéphane Varupenne, and Margot Abascal, the film will find Sciamma returning to themes of adolescence, which she explored in different facets in Water Lillies, Tomboy, and Girlhood. Check out the synopsis below via Berlinale’s official site.
Eight-year-old Nelly has just lost her beloved grandmother and is helping her parents clean out her mother’s childhood home. She explores the house and the surrounding woods where her mum, Marion, used to play and where...
- 2/18/2021
- by Jordan Raup
- The Film Stage
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