Revealed via her debut feature film Playground [+leggi anche:
recensione
trailer
intervista: Laura Wandel
scheda film], which was presented in Cannes’ Un Certain Regard section in 2021, Laura Wandel is due to begin filming on her second feature film, L’Intérêt d’Adam, in a few days’ time, with Léa Drucker and Anamaria Vartolomei heading up the cast.

Wandel’s first feature film - which claimed the FIPRESCI Prize in the afore-mentioned Cannes line-up - thrust her onto both the Belgian and the global film scenes, at the beginning of a remarkable career which now sees her gearing up to be Belgium’s candidate for the Oscars, having previously bagged no fewer than 7 Magritte film awards, including trophies for Best First Film and Best Director. The young filmmaker could already boast a degree of familiarity with Cannes’ award scene, thanks to Les Corps Étrangers which competed for the Palme d’Or for Best Short Film. And her connections with the Croisette don’t stop there, because she partly wrote L’Intérêt d’Adam within the context of the Cinéfondation residency, which is also organised by the Cannes Film Festival.

This second feature film begins when 4-year-old malnourished Adam is admitted to hospital off the back of a court ruling. Head paediatric nurse Lucy allows Adam’s mum Rebecca to stay by her son’s side, despite the strictly limited visiting times set by the judge. When Rebecca digs her heels in and refuses to leave Adam, things become complicated. In the interest of the child, Lucy does everything she can to help this mother in distress. After homing in on bullying and how difficult it is to manage within the school system, the director is now turning her focus to another struggling system, namely the hospital setting, whilst keeping the preservation of childhood central to her concerns.

In the role of Lucy, we find Léa Drucker, who recently starred in Last Summer [+leggi anche:
recensione
trailer
intervista: Catherine Breillat
scheda film], which won her a nomination for the Best Actress César, and Custody [+leggi anche:
recensione
trailer
intervista: Xavier Legrand
scheda film], which ultimately secured her the trophy. Acting opposite her in the role of Rebecca is Anamaria Vartolomei, a talent discovered in Happening [+leggi anche:
recensione
trailer
intervista: Anamaria Vartolomei
scheda film], which earned her the Best Female Newcomer César. She has also recently delivered excellent performances in films as wide-ranging as The Empire [+leggi anche:
recensione
trailer
intervista: Bruno Dumont
scheda film], Being Maria [+leggi anche:
recensione
trailer
intervista: Jessica Palud
scheda film] and The Count of Monte-Cristo [+leggi anche:
recensione
trailer
scheda film].

The present movie sees Laura Wandel reuniting with Belgium’s Stéphane Lhoest (Dragons Films), who previously produced Playground. This new endeavour sees the latter joining forces with Les Films du Fleuve and producer Delphine Tomson. L’Intérêt d’Adam is co-produced by Lunanime in Flanders and by Les Films de Pierre in France. International sales are entrusted to Indie Sales, French distribution to Memento and Belgian distribution to Lumière. Filming will unfold between 26 July and 5 September.