– CANNES 2026: Agnès Jaoui immerses the preparations for an opera in the turmoil of the questions that have been sweeping through society since the #MeToo movement
Eye Haïdara and Agnès Jaoui in Crescendo
French actor and director Agnès Jaoui presented her new feature film, Crescendo, out of competition at the 79th Cannes Film Festival. In the film, she depicts the production of an opera disrupted by the differing sensibilities of its performers and crew, which come to a head following an incident between the conductor and the young leading lady. This is the sixth feature film written and directed by Agnès Jaoui, who notably won the César Awards for Best Film and Best Screenplay for The Taste of Others in 2001, but it is the first film she has written without her collaborator Jean-Pierre Bacri, who passed away in 2021. For the screenplay, she has brought together a diverse group of writers, including Emmanuel Salinger, Noé Debré, Laurent Jaoui and Florence Seyvos.
It all begins with an audition scene: singers are being sought for an ambitious new production of The Marriage of Figaro. As the hopefuls take to the stage, we gradually get to know some of the characters who will bring this ensemble film to life : the seasoned conductor (Daniel Auteuil), an ageing white man soon to be brought down by his romantic ‘career’; the young muse (Claire Chust), a social media star thrust into the role of director by a producer venturing into opera; the young leading lady with the fragile voice (Tiphaine Daviot), the patron’s daughter; the Black singer with the crystal-clear voice (Eye Haïdara), whose casting in a male role shakes things up. As the first rehearsals approach, everyone is finding their feet. Mirabelle, the director, discovers the insular nature of the milieu, where her somewhat formulaic attempts at deconstruction are received with varying degrees of grace, her outsider’s perspective serving in part as a guide for the opera novice. Hannah (Agnès Jaoui), a star soprano who plays high-profile supporting roles, observes with a gaze that is both concerned and amused as the times collide head-on with this little theatre of human passions (and vanities). Until the troupe sets off for the South, where the opera is to be performed, for a sort of open-air retreat where their dedication to their work and love of opera will heighten everyone’s passions.
Against a broadly conventional backdrop – one that reveals what goes on behind the scenes, with artists and creative collaborators at work on a piece in progress – Agnès Jaoui explores fifty shades of reaction to an accusation of sexual assault. Each character in this ensemble piece represents a particular perspective on the situation and perhaps on the wider debate that is stirring contemporary society: what should be made of the words of women, or of victims, of the presumption of innocence, and of the interpretation of gestures?
A generational conflict is taking shape – boomers versus the woke – but it’s not just that; there are also ethical and moral issues at stake, and attitudes towards intransigence, tolerance, empathy and sympathy that underpin the actions (to some extent) and the words (to a great extent) of the various protagonists. It’s a light-hearted way – if one accepts the artificial nature of the setup and its formulaic feel – of tackling divisive issues, embracing the stereotypical characters that make up the cast, a role the actors seem to take on with gusto.
Crescendo was produced by Les Films du Kiosque (France) and co-produced by Versus Production (Belgium), StudioCanal and France 2 Cinéma. StudioCanal handles international sales.
(Translated from French)
