Clouds of Sils Maria
Maria Enders, a star at the height of her career, is offered a role in a play that brought her fame 20 years earlier. Earlier, she played the part of Sigrid, an attractive young girl who seduces her influential boss Helena and drives her to suicide. This time, Maria will play the part of Helena. As a tribute to the late author, she accepts the offer and, along with her assistant, leaves for the Alps in order to prepare for the role. The second character in the play, Sigrid, is to be played this time by a rising star from Hollywood. In this ambitious and scandalous young woman, Maria sees herself from years earlier. This confrontation offers her a chance to take a fresh look at her life and career. Clouds of Sils Maria is an ambitious tale about how art and pop culture can penetrate and shape real relationships between people. The most effective part of the film, however, are the extraordinary shots of scenic locations and magical atmospheric phenomena in the Alps.
Katarzyna Wolanin
Olivier Assayas
Olivier Assayas was born in 1955 in Paris. After studying Literature and Art, he began making short film, worked on screenplays, and wrote books and articles for Cahiers du Cinéma. He has directed 15 films, the vast majority of which have been screened at the most prestigious festivals. He garnered fame with his 2010 film Carlos, a multi-award-winning mini-series about Ilich Ramírez Sánchez, the terrorist better known as Carlos the Jackal.
Selected filmography
1994 Zimna woda / L’Eau froide
1996 Irma Vep
2004 Czysta / Clean
2008 Pewnego lata / L’Heure d’été / Summer Hours
2012 Po maju / Après mai / Something in the Air