13/12/2013 - After father/son relationships in The Boat Race, Bernard Bellefroid directs a couple of surrogate mothers in his second feature, Melody

Bernard Bellefroid drew attention with his final year school project, the sober and shocking documentary Rwanda, les collines parlent. In 2009, he directed his first feature, The Boat Race [+see also:
trailer
interview: Bernard Bellefroid, directo…
film profile], the story of a teenager who dedicates himself to sport (in this case rowing) to forget the beatings he got from his father. A film about shattered youth, with lots of violence, but also about surpassing oneself. Bellefroid never denied his admiration for the Dardenne brothers, who actually supervised his final year project and helped him develop The Boat Race. With his new film, Melody, Bernard Bellefroid once again delves into a complex relationship, which could have inspired the famous brothers.

Melody, 28 years old, a confused child born under the name X, decides to rent out her body in order to get the money she needs to realize her dream: opening a hair-dressing salon. To do so, she accepts to carry the child of Emily, a rich English woman 48 years old who can no longer have children. To make sure everything goes well and keep an eye on her future child, Emily decides to welcome Melody into her home and stay by her side throughout the pregnancy. Although they first appear to come from completely different worlds, the two women end up adopting each other: Melody finds in Emily the mother she never had, and Emily sees in Melody the daughter she always wanted to have. Evidently, the bonds that emerge during this double maternity create all sorts of doubts and questions.

Emily will be played by Rachel Blake, recently seen in Sleeping Beauty. As for Melody, the director has chosen Lucie Debay, a young actress known for her work in theatre and shorts, who should gain visibility from this intense role, as was the case for Joffery Verbruggen and David Murgia in The Boat Race.

Melody is produced by Artémis Production, which continues its partnership with Bernard Bellefroid, in co-production with Samsa Films (Luxembourg) and Mille et Une Films (France), with the backing of the CCA, RTBF, the Film Fund Luxembourg and Wallimage/Bruxellimage. The film will be distributed in France by Rezo and sold internationally by Doc & Film. Filming will start on January 13 for 6 weeks in Brittany, Luxembourg, Odessa and Liverpool.

(Translated from French)