Clash of cultures between Benjamin Lavernhe and Pierre Lottin in the comedy “En fanfare”

You all come from very different artistic backgrounds. What was the process of finding harmony to interpret these two brothers who seem to be opposed to each other?

Pierre Lottin: I'm not sure we're really that different! It's a bit like the Beatles: Paul McCartney came from a modest background and John Lennon from a more affluent background. There, I am the one of ''the street'' and Benjamin the one on the ''more chic'' side.

Benjamin Lavernhe: This diversity is interesting. I have done a lot of theater, including the Comédie-Française, and Pierre has a career marked by popular comedies like ''Les Tuche''. We found ourselves on a common playing field, and that created real richness in our work.

Exactly, Pierre, the comic dosage in this film is very different from that of ''Tuche''. Was this a challenge for you?

P. L.: Not really. Each role requires a particular dosage. In ''Les Tuche'', everything is more exaggerated. Here, we are on a more nuanced register, but it remains comical. I would even say that this role mixes several styles of humor: there is posture, breaks, work on the voice… It allowed me to explore another universe while keeping an element of composition.

You are both great music fans, even musicians. How did your meeting go at this level?

B. L.: We didn't discuss our musical tastes much. But there were notable moments, especially around a piano. Pierre improvises very well, he is self-taught, and that really touched me because I learned the piano in a bit the same way, by ear. During filming, he improvised a concert in a retirement home for free. The residents were over the moon. These kinds of moments show how much music can bring people together.

P. L.: These are moments where everything naturally connects. In the musical scenes of the film, we understood each other, without needing to talk too much.

''A Fanfare'' also deals with social and cultural differences. How did you approach these themes?

B. L.: My character, Thibaut, wants to “save” his brother Jimmy. Yes, but, ultimately, save him from what, exactly? It's interesting because this attitude reveals his own certainties, his guilt for having had a better life than him. As a result, he wants to make up for it and give Jimmy the chance he didn't get. Not making Thibaut unsympathetic was a real challenge. We didn't want him to appear condescending or paternalistic towards his brother. He is sometimes wrong in his intentions, but that's what makes him human. He is driven by the sincere desire to see his brother fully exploit his talent.

P. L.: At first there is a hint of jealousy between them, but it doesn't go too far. Jimmy quickly agrees to make this donation which can save Thibaut from leukemia. He has no hard feelings. A complementarity quickly arises between them: what one leaves unfinished, the other tries to fill.

How did you collaborate with the amateur actors who play in the marching band?

B. L.: At first, I was a little apprehensive because they had never acted in a film. But they were very natural, even on long days of filming. And off camera, they were incredibly warm.

P. L.: We quickly felt that they were authentic. Their presence nourished the film.

Benjamin Lavernhe, your career choices demonstrate a taste for popular auteur cinema. Is this your main selection criterion when you receive a project?

B. L.: Theater and cinema must remain popular arts. Many people think that classical theater, for example, is inaccessible, but this is not true. Molière, to name just one, wrote plays that are aimed at everyone. We simply have to break these complexes and make the works accessible without simplifying them. The objective is to reach a wide audience without falling into formatting or consensual content. ''En fanfare'' reflects this philosophy well. It is, in fact, a demanding but sincere work, in which it is easy to recognize oneself.