The 23-year-old model turned actress spoke to Andreas Wiseman about her challenging role in Francois Ozon’s Young & Beautiful (Jeune et Jolie).

Jeune et Jolie star Marine Vacth was among the biggest revelations at Cannes 2013. 

The 23-year-old model turned actress spoke about her challenging role as a seventeen year-old whose sexual awakening leads to prostitution in Francois Ozon’s competition entry Young & Beautiful (Jeune et Jolie).

The Chloe and YSL perfume model began her modeling career aged 15. She has subsequently appeared in Cedric Klapisch’s My Piece of the Pie in 2011 and Alexandre Arcady’s Ce Que le Jour Doit à la Nuit. Vacth’s performance in Jeune et Jolie marks her first leading role.

How did you come to the part?

Initially, I did a casting with the casting director. Then Francois wanted to meet me so we met and discussed the part and he then gave me the script, which I read and we discussed the part some more.

Were you intimidated by the prospect of this challenging role?

When I got the script I experienced a lot of different emotions and I wasn’t sure if I could accept the part. The film obviously focuses on my character to a large extent, which was difficult. But I accepted it.

The film is about a young woman’s maturation. Did you also mature during the film?

Kind of. It’s like plunging or diving in to yourself to discover different things.

What did Francois do during shoot to make you feel comfortable in the part?

We laughed a lot! There wasn’t a heavy atmosphere on set, and not as heavy as I had imagined there might be. There was a lot of support from the crew so that made things simpler.

Did you like your character?

Yes.

Do you think women are sexualised by society at too young an age today?

I think its true that everything moves very fast now. You have access to so much more information at a young age. By the time you are 12 you are entering sexuality. Its very raw. I’m not from previous generations so I can’t compare now to then but certainly it can be frightening. But that’s the time we live in.

How do you see yourself in a few years, as a model or an actress?

More as an actress, but we’ll see.

Do you have any other film roles lined up?

Yes, but nothing is concrete yet. 

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