Following on from her acclaimed short films (primarily appreciated in Locarno and the Directors’ Fortnight), Marie-Elsa Sgualdo has ventured into the feature film world by way of Silent Rebellion [+lee también:
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Cineuropa: A period drama set in 1943 is a pretty bold step for a first feature film. Where did the idea for the film come from?
Marie-Elsa Sgualdo: When I start writing films, I’m guided by an inner voice, a woman’s voice which asks me questions. Me and Nadine Lamari, who co-wrote the film, went back in time (through testimonials) to explore just how complicated it was for women to assert their autonomy and independence. Because even if women’s rights have evolved, there are still lots of servitude-related aspects which need deconstructing; the advances we’ve made are under threat and are far from definitive. We grew really attached to the main character, Emma, and wanted to defend her to the death, at all costs, because she constantly reminded us that nothing is a given, that independence comes at a price, and that we have to keep fighting. We also felt a lot of women would identify with Emma, because they’ve been fighting all their lives too. It was important to us that Emma’s journey and her more or less conscious awakening conveyed a kind of courage, in terms of getting to know herself whilst also becoming aware of what’s going on around her.

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Why did you decide to explore the question of the female condition through the main character, Emma, who’s a 15 to 17-year-old teen?
Emma evolves from a state of naivety to a kind of political awakening in the early stages of becoming engaged. During adolescence, we try to fit in with people’s expectations of us before we start questioning the status quo. It was a young woman evolving into a woman that I wanted to depict, and the extent of that metamorphosis. She’s in the early stages of independence and things are very difficult, especially given the very unique wartime context. But it’s mostly about a desire to be true to oneself: to try to protect the deepest and more precious part of ourselves: our humanity.

Emma’s inner journey – a story that’s very unique but which could happen to any woman, at any time – also resonates with the wider historical context.
The particular context of Switzerland during the Second World War allowed us to explore the principle of neutrality. What does that neutrality mean in people’s everyday lives? What happens when we turn our backs on reality? Emma finds neutrality impossible, she wants to protect her dignity and other people’s dignity too. We found these ideas resonated with modern-day reality, in terms of Europe and migration issues and Switzerland’s neutrality in modern-day conflicts. Above and beyond all that, it’s a decisive time for our relationships with the world, a time when we’ve lost our capacity for empathy or humanity. It’s a way of reminding ourselves that nothing is a given these days, that we have to keep fighting too, to retain our dignity and to keep helping one another.

What were your intentions for the film’s mise en scène?
I wanted to be as close as possible to Emma, for people to almost hear her breathing, to not need words, to be immersed in her physicality, her face, her expressions, her silence. It lends a contemporary feel to the story because we feel she’s close to us. Making a period drama was what scared me the most. I wanted people to forget that it was a period drama and for them to fully commit to the character. But the film’s limited budget also prevented me from using many wide shots.

The film is co-produced by Switzerland, Belgium and France. How did that collaboration come about?
Right from the outset, the idea was for it to be co-produced by these three countries and, in Switzerland, RTS came on board as co-producer. My producer (Elena Tatti of Box Productions) had a very good relationship with Julie Esparbes (Hélicotronc), so it was easy with Belgium. But it was really hard keeping France interested (via Fabrice Préel-Cléach of Offshore) because the competition there is fierce, but ultimately we won the support of the Bourgogne-Franche-Comté region. The entire process was very long and drawn out.