Belgian-born actress Virginie Efira (All of a Sudden, Parallel Tales, Benedetta, Paris Memories) took the stage in the central Piazza Grande square at the 79th edition of the Locarno Film Festival on Friday evening to receive this year’s Leopard Club Award.
“It is truly a joy, a privilege and an immense honor for me to be here with you to receive this award,” she said in French in front of a huge crowd in the Italian-speaking part of Switzerland, before adding: “I sincerely apologize for only speaking French. Do most people understand?” The crowd’s answer was a loud “yes.”
She continued with praise for the Locarno festival. “I also want to say, and I feel this very strongly when I see you all here in this square, … that Locarno is perhaps the festival with the greatest faith in the audience,” Efira offered. “The idea [is] that we, as viewers — and I share this belief, like you — are all hungry for films that resonate with us, that move us, that innovate, that offer us something greater, and that we are not finite entities with predictable desires, that we want to be surprised. And Locarno truly has that trust in the audience, and that warms my heart.”
She continued: “The Locarno Film Festival is truly avant-garde. It discovers artists, it looks at a cinema that is being invented, and that is extremely important.”
Efira also got emotional, sharing: “I think it’s the first time I’ve received an award like this. I’ve received awards before, at Cannes, for example, but not a recognition like this for several films and for a career. It touches me deeply.”
But the star emphasized that film is about more than one actor. “I share this award with the public who love films, and I also share it with directors, who are true creators,” Efira told the Locarno crowd. “Because for an actor, this award is a very heavy burden. An actor on their own isn’t much. It’s truly a collective profession. And to achieve something that might have some merit, you need a vision.”
Efira then namechecked various directors she has collaborated with, such as Ryusuke Hamaguchi, Justine Triet, Rebecca Zlotowski and Valérie Donzelli. “On your own, you’re not much,” Efira concluded. “And without the audience, you’re nothing at all. So, thank you for your curiosity.”
While at the Swiss festival, Efira will present Ryusuke Hamaguchi’s All of a Sudden (Soudain), for which she won the Palme for best actress at Cannes and for which she learned to act partly in Japanese. With that film and Asghar Farhadi’s Parallel Tales, Efira pulled double duty in this year’s Cannes competition, winning the best actress honor together with her All of a Sudden co-star Tao Okamoto.
When she mentioned that people in the square can see that film in Locarno on Saturday, her microphone cut out for a few seconds, but the star quickly decided to simply continue talking without amplification, just more loudly. When the mic started working again seconds later, she said to laughs: “Oh, it works, great!”
Locarno artistic director Giona A. Nazzaro had introduced the star, also in French, full of pride. “It is an incredible honor to welcome Virginie Efira, an incomparable artist,” he said, also praising her for “always remaining true to herself.” And he concluded: “Virginie Efira embodies the modernity of cinema.”
After Efira received her honor, it was time for the world premiere of I Is Another (Ich Ist ein Anderer), written and directed by Felix Randau and starring Claes Bang (The Square, Bad Sisters, Home) and Valerie Pachner (The Stories, Fantastic Beasts: The Secrets of Dumbledore, Four Minus Three), which tells the story of Nazi Heinrich Himmler‘s former massage therapist.
The creative team briefly discussed their film and shared their excitement about being on stage in front of a crowded square full of film lovers. Shared Bang: “I must say: This looks much better than in photos. People, you are amazing! Thank you for coming!” The crowd erupted into applause and cheers before the star added: “This is so pretty and beautiful and wonderful.”
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