France / 2024 / 100 min / French with English subtitles / Bio Pic
The drama “Being Maria” reframes the short career and tragic life of “Last Tango in Paris” star Maria Schneider in a post-#MeToo light. “Happening” breakout Anamaria Vartolomei plays Schneider, while Matt Dillon takes on the role of her co-star Marlon Brando. The film in part tracks the controversial production and wrenching fallout of Bernardo Bertolucci’s 1972 masterpiece — a landmark that made Schneider an icon while locking her into a sexualized image she never could escape. Palud’s sophomore feature also marks a fitting echo for the Gallic auteur, who kicked off her professional life on the set of Bertolucci’s “The Dreamers.”
DIRECTOR: Jessica Palud was born in Paris, and has worked as an assistant director on films such as Bernardo Bertolucci’s THE DREAMERS and Sofia Coppola’s MARIE ANTOINETTE. She has directed the shorts DOLL (2016) and MARLON (2017). The latter was selected at Toronto IFF. Her latest film BACK HOME (2019) was selected in the Orizzonti section of the 76th Venice International Film Festival.
DIRECTOR’S STATEMENT: I started my career on film sets at 19 years old, as an assistant director for The Dreamers, a film by Bernardo Bertolucci. I learned about what happened on Last Tango in Paris and always wondered how something like that could have come about. It stayed with me for years. Then, when Vanessa Schneider’s book came out, I was deeply moved by Maria’s story.
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