In ten years, Franck Gastambide has established himself well as a director in the French cinematographic landscape with popular box office successes. After The Kaïras (2012) et Pattaya (2016), it brings together nearly 3.7 million curious people with Taxi 5 (by imposing itself in an original way on the project). The phenomenon Valid establishes it on the small screen and platforms, which it will also confirm this year with The Cage. In June 2023, he returns with Medellínreleased directly on Prime Video. This action comedy follows a young YouTuber fascinated by Pablo Escobar, Pablito, who follows in the footsteps of the drug lord in Colombia. He was kidnapped a few days later by drug traffickers. Reda, his older brother, accompanied by Stan, his childhood friend, and an unexpected guest, goes there to find him. His plan is simple: confront the men of the cartel himself. A film starring Franck Gastambide, Ramzy Bedia, Anouar Toubali, Essined Aponte, and even… Mike Tyson. We met the director on the sidelines of the film's release.
Franck Gastambide talks about his film Medellin broadcast this evening on W9
Télé-Loisirs: Where did the idea for this film come from?
Franck Gastambide: I started writing it when I was coming out of three years devoted to my series Valid. I wanted to come back with an ambitious action comedy. This register is rarely discussed in France.
I find that there is a little Pattayaof Taxiand Very Bad Trip even…
I feel like it's a bit of a summary of what I've been able to do in my last ten years of career. Some scenes from this film could be in Pattaya or in The Kaïras. My experience on Taxi 5 also helped me on how to film stunts.
No one had ever filmed in the “Pablo-Escobar district”, built by the drug lord himself…
At first it was scary. But we felt safe all the time. We were welcomed by warm people. They seemed grateful that we were coming to their neighborhood to shoot a film. At the end of each day of filming, the local residents even invited us to eat.
Franck Gastambide talks about Mike Tyson's participation in Medellin
Is there still a form of fascination for Pablo Escobar?
They have a somewhat ambiguous relationship with Escobar [décédé en 1993, ndlr] : they are aware of his monstrosity but they feel grateful towards him because he did for them what no one else did. His mother still comes to bring things for the children. He is considered a bit like an uncle by the younger generation.
How did the meeting with Mike Tyson go?
I will remember the first time I entered his dressing room all my life. A CIA agent was there to ensure his safety. When he arrived, the Colombian army even came to welcome him! The entire floor of a hotel had been privatized for him. It is part of American heritage, so it is protected.
You are multi-dys (dyslexic, dysorthographic, dyspraxic, dyscalculic) and HPI (high intellectual potential). Do you feel these invisible handicaps more when you direct?
For the longest time, I had imposter syndrome because I never studied film. Today, with my successes, I experience it better. Diagnosing my HPI helped me understand myself better. I talk about it because it's useful. When I was 16, I felt like an idiot. I wish I saw someone on TV with the same problems as me.
