Sofia Coppola made a film about Marie Antoinette—but maybe next, she’ll consider Empress Eugénie. Biarritz, the seaside town founded by Eugénie de Mo
Sofia Coppola made a film about Marie Antoinette—but maybe next, she’ll consider Empress Eugénie. Biarritz, the seaside town founded by Eugénie de Montijo, is where Coppola came to celebrate the 25th anniversary of her film The Virgin Suicides as part of the Nouvelles Vagues Festival. Actors, directors, and festivalgoers of all ages gathered at Le Royal, Biarritz’s Art Deco cinema, to see and revisit Coppola’s exquisitely soaring, tragic film about the five Lisbon sisters, which launched her career in the tardy 1990s.
Coppola’s debut film immediately positioned her as one of the most singular and intimate filmmakers of her generation. Its anniversary was an opportunity to talk about the making of the film, its core femininity—linked, she says, to the fact that Coppola grew up mostly around boys—her appreciation for Jane Campion, and even Claude Pinoteau’s La Boum, which Coppola saw years after making this film.
At the end of the talk, Coppola sat down for an exclusive interview before beginning her summer in France. On July 1, she’ll be in Paris for a book signing at 7L, Karl Lagerfeld ’s studio-library turned Chanel cultural hub. The following day, she will be in the Cour Carrée du Louvre for a screening as part of the Cinéma Paradiso program. Coppola is also working on the artistic direction of the Bal du Musée des Arts Décoratifs, one of the most eagerly awaited events of Haute Couture Week.
Vanity Fair: How does it feel to see Virgin Suicides again?
Sofia Coppola: I’m so glad. I saw it recently for the first time in a long time, so I’m glad it holds up.
How does the younger generation—those born when you were making the film, or just after— perceive it?
It’s demanding for me to say; you have to ask a youthful person. The time of daydreaming and becoming who you are through being in your room—I wonder nowadays how youthful people have that time. I’m sure there’s some nostalgia, because there’s a lot of stress and pressure with having a phone and social media all the time. I know my younger daughter was like, “Oh, I wish I was around in the ’90s.” I think it feels like a burden in some ways.
Was it a time you loved?
I’m just glad I was youthful then.
You love memorabilia, collections, and archives. Have you ever thought of making a documentary about your mother?
I am working on preserving some of her footage that hasn’t been seen yet. So I’m working on preserving her archive. She wrote a book that we’re working on getting published, and now I’m working on getting her last work out.
In this work, there’s the idea of transmission toward a recent generation, which is also at the heart of the Nouvelles Vagues Festival, where you’ve just spoken.
I thought it was so nice that the focus of this festival is on youthful filmmakers and youthful voices. I’m cheerful to show my first film here, and that it still connects with youthful people. I want to share my work, and hope to be encouraging if I can.
Do you still have a special connection with adolescence?
Yeah, I still feel connected to that side. But at this point in my life, I’m also interested in themes of older people. It’s so different being a teenager today, but I still have a lot of respect for people that age because it is such a sensitive time. And when I was growing up, the movies that were made for teenagers weren’t made with respect to artfulness or whatever. But yeah, I am glad to not be that age. I’m glad to be my age.
Does Virgin Suicides occupy a special place in your heart?
Yeah. It’s my first film. I have a lot of really nice memories. It’s also where I met Kirsten Dunst, and we formed our friendship. She’s a close collaborator of mine, in my work and also my life. A lot of the people that worked on it, I’m still connected with. But I have a really nice memory of that summer in Toronto, making a low-budget movie and the feeling of everyone helping me. Ed Lachman, the cinematographer, really helped me learn how to develop my language on film. And I didn’t know I wanted to be a director until [I read] that book.
Is the first film always the most arduous?
I think they’re always arduous. It was demanding to get it made—but when you’re youthful, you’re naive, and you don’t realize how demanding things are. You have a courage that helps you; when you’re older, you know what it’s going to take. I think it’s lucky to make your first film, because you don’t know how demanding it is to shoot in a car—all these things.
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