00:00Right, this is also the least professional I'm being.
00:03Oh my god, it's amazing!
00:21Yes, so the substance has had such a huge reaction ever since its can debuted
00:26and even online, trending with memes and everything like that.
00:30How has it been for you, witnessing all of this, just from the inception to it taking a life of its own?
00:35I mean, it's been really amazing because I think every filmmaker, you know,
00:41wants his movie to be seen and to be received and to be loved,
00:45but I think for this one, especially with what it was about,
00:49with the very important message that I wanted to let out and, you know,
00:54do a real kick in the system to spread it out there,
00:59it's been like so incredible to see that it had rich people, you know,
01:05that it had also sparked so many conversations,
01:08that it had let an imprint, you know, on the cultural life.
01:15And recently, Demi Moore made some comments, I'm going to quote her,
01:19that the US is built on puritans, religious fanatics and criminals
01:23and she's also said that sexuality remains taboo and there's a lot of fear in America around the body.
01:29Now, could the same, in your opinion, be said about Europe?
01:32Is it more important now, more than ever, to celebrate the body on screen?
01:36Well, I mean, unfortunately, I think what she says about the body is true
01:42all over the world, especially for women's bodies.
01:47And the fact that now you see that Trump, you know, comes back
01:52and again, we are going to live the same story about the limitations,
01:57that the fundamental rights that are threatened again in 2024.
02:03This is just insane.
02:05I mean, unfortunately, the story that is said in the substance is true from the beginning of humanity.
02:11You know, the relationship to women's bodies, how we want to hide it,
02:15how we want to comment on it, how we want to control it,
02:19how we want to dominate it, how we want, you know, to shape it.
02:23This is what the movie is about.
02:25Like, we should let women do whatever they want with their bodies.
02:30They should be able to use it the way they want, be sexy if they want to,
02:35be not sexy if they don't want to, cover it, not cover it, do whatever the fuck they want.
02:42Sorry, but that's really the fact that we are still, you know, so much commenting it,
02:49criticizing, scrutinizing it, restricting it.
02:53We need a real change because you see the story repeats itself again and again and again.
02:59And it's like different people, but same story.
03:02It's time for a change, for a real change.
03:05And the change cannot be delicate.
03:07It cannot be gentle.
03:08It cannot be small.
03:09It needs to be massive.
03:11It needs to be everywhere.
03:13And it needs to be now.
03:18There's been a slight misuse of the substance.
03:22And there was also this thing, this slightly troubling trend I found.
03:26Because when I saw the film in Cannes, it was very much an electroshock.
03:30And it did remind me of Titan as well.
03:33And I remember speaking to Juliet de Corneau at the time.
03:37And the press were constantly saying, oh, my God, there are people fainting and vomiting and leaving the theatre.
03:43And it was the same thing with your film.
03:45And I remember asking Juliet de Corneau, this feels like a little bit of a sexist double standard here.
03:50Because if it was a man behind the camera, then maybe people would just go, oh, well, this is a very violent film.
03:56And, you know, here, I don't know.
03:58What do you make of that?
03:59I don't, you know, I don't really care about those comments.
04:03Because, A, for me, like the fact that the movie creates so much violence.
04:09The movie is bold, it's provocative.
04:11So I'm also super happy that some people hate it.
04:15Like, everyone is welcome to the party.
04:18The fact that we are still making, you know, separate, like, male directors and women directors,
04:25it's still because the numbers are still so very few.
04:29So it means that, you know, we are still making, you know,
04:34the numbers are still so very few.
04:37So it means that we're not yet in a place where it's just not a subject of conversation, you know.
04:45I think there is still this thing where we're spotted in some, you know, sort of singularity,
04:53which I hope won't be the case in a few years, where we won't even comment,
04:59because, like, there will be space for everyone.
05:02Which is still very, very slow, I think.
05:12This one is done, which is great.
05:14And now I just generally can't wait to get some time back to start writing again,
05:21because I already know what I want to write next.
05:24And the fact that The Substance, for me, was a confirmation that I know what I like.
05:30I know how I love to express myself.
05:32I know how I love to make things.
05:35Brought me so much confidence, empowerment,
05:39that I know that the third one will be, yeah, such a happy moment.
05:44It's always tough to make a film, but I feel in a good place.
05:48And I just, yeah, can't wait to get back to work, to be honest.
05:52Brilliant. Well, Carly Fargeat, thank you so much for your time.
05:55Thank you so much.
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