Alice Diop On: Last News

Alice Diop’s French drama Saint Omer opens in theaters today, and I remember the emotions I felt when I saw the film at Venice last year. It was a very personal experience for me — as if someone was telling my story on screen. At the beginning of my eventual interview with Diop, I asked where she sees herself within the French film industry. She made it clear she has stopped contemplating how she fits in. “It’s a question that I’m asked a lot, but I no longer ask myself where I fit in with French cinema,” she said. Can’t blame her for thinking that way. Creators of color often are asked those questions — or about the state of inclusion in Hollywood and how they would improve it. Questions that their white counterparts frequently and unfairly avoid. 

Ben Croll Playing in Berlin’s Encounters sidebar, the French documentary “We” spins a tapestry of small moments and personal recollections, finding connections in the lives of migrants, immigrants, lovesick teens and retirees without downplaying their hardships. Among the film’s many subjects is director Alice Diop’s own family, with home movies of Diop’s late parents and footage of her sister, a nurse who treats the elderly, offering an emotional through- line.Where did the idea for the film originate?The idea comes from a book by a journalist who hiked along the tracks of RER B, [a commuter train] which connects Paris’ northern and southern suburbs, and which connects extremely disparate areas and social structures.