INTERVIEW – From this Tuesday, June 25, 9 a.m., the documentary I am Celine Dion appears on the Prime Video platform. The American Irène Taylor, who followed the star in her daily life for many months, reveals all her secrets to us.
Nominated for the Oscars and showered with awards for her documentaries broadcast notably on HBO, the American filmmaker Irène Taylor is now famous for having won the trust of Celine Dion . Before the release of the documentary I am Céline Dion which comes out this Tuesday, June 25, at 9 a.m., on Prime Video, she spoke to the Figaro on June 20 by zoom from his vast wooden home in Portland, Ohio.
LE FIGARO. – You were contacted by Céline Dion’s record label at the end of 2020. What was the initial project?
Irene TAYLOR. – I had to film her return to stage in Las Vegas at the end of the pandemic and then follow her on her world tour.
In October 2021, fifteen days after the announcement of your filming to the media and fans, Céline Dion’s managers contacted you urgently?
I was in the middle of preparing the film when they told me that Céline was too ill to go back on stage and that the concerts were all going to be canceled. But Céline decided to continue filming. Simply, we had to change the angle. It became: a mega star reveals the truth and recounts his daily life facing a mysterious illness.
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Did Celine Dion have any demands?
Our first meeting took place by zoom in winter 2021. She just asked me to be the only one to speak about her life, her illness. I was delighted. This brings a real authenticity to the film. But I immediately stressed to her that it was going to be more difficult for her, that I was going to need her more. And she absolutely had to remain honest. I’m sure she was, I feel those things (she taps her nose, editor’s note) and I hope the spectators will have the same feeling.
How was the filming?
There were two parts. One before the publication of her video where she announces her illness on Instagram on December 8, 2022 and the other after. From there, she was able to begin to rebuild herself. I always worked in a small team with my faithful cinematographer Nick X. We were always masked so as not to put Céline at risk. We filmed over a year, from winter 2021 to winter 2022. The sessions lasted two or five days in a row. If she was too tired or sick, we would let a day pass and stay in the Airbnb we rented. In total, we filmed over eight weeks. We followed her with the camera walking around the house, doing something or sitting in interview mode. Céline is a night owl so we arrived early in the afternoon and sometimes left at midnight. She never asked me to stop filming, including during the scene of her impressive attack of muscle spasms. As we were editing while filming, the documentary was completely finished, including editing and post-production by Christmas 2022. We all wanted to be on vacation for the holiday season (laughs).
“René-Charles takes very good care of his mother”
Irene Taylor, director of I Am Celine Dion on Prime Video
Who filmed the scene where the emergency doctors take her unconscious from pain on a stretcher?
It’s one of his managers. It was the 2020-mid 2022 time when Céline didn’t know what she had. She traveled from doctor to doctor to get a diagnosis. It was very trying for her. All these trips were a stress on his body. They made the symptoms of his illness worse. At the time of the call for help, she was in Denver, Colorado where her doctor at the time was. She was supposed to see him the next day, she arrived at the hospital twelve hours early.
Ultimately, your year of filming is divided into two parts?
Yes. There are the first seven-eight months where she does not know what she is suffering from. This was not obvious, this disease cannot be detected with a simple blood test. When she was finally able to put a name to her illness, we had about four months of filming left. There, she had changed doctors.
Why don’t we see René-Charles, his eldest son in the film?
It appears at length in the private archive images that Céline lent us. René-Charles simply wasn’t there when we came to film. But he is her rock. He takes very good care of his mother.
Read alsoTears and standing ovation: the rare appearance of Céline Dion and her son René-Charles on the red carpet
The film ends on a somber note with footage that is over eighteen months old. Why not add more recent ones?
It was difficult enough to eliminate scenes to keep it at 102 minutes. And then Céline is not dead!
Exactly. The film was shelved for a year after it was completed. Normally, the producer sells the rights before filming or as soon as the film is finished. MGM/Amazon Prime bought it in January 2024 and announced almost at the last moment that it would be put online for June 25, 2024. Did we have to wait for a particular event like her death or for her to get better?
But Céline is doing very, very well!!!
Are you going to produce a second or third film with the rushes you have left?
I have 70 hours of footage that is not in the film. We’ll see (mischievous laughter).
Your film deserves to win multiple awards. Is it possible ?
That’s very nice of you to tell me that. Fingers crossed.
