INTERVIEW
After the comedies ( The Profs , Gaston Lagaffe ), Pierre-François Martin-Laval, called "Pef", invests the genre of drama with his new film Fahim , or the true story of Fahim and his father, two Bangladeshi refugees who flee their country for France and Paris, where they try to obtain political asylum. In L'Equipée sauvage, on Europe 1, "Pef" returns to this feature film and the approach that led him to this story.
"The appalling decision to leave one's country"
The trigger took place in February 2014, when Pierre-François Martin-Laval learned about the story of a refugee, Fahim, who recounts his life in an interview. "Then I buy his book, A Clandestine King , in which he describes all this in detail and I was upset," recalls the director. Especially, "Pef" then became aware of one thing: "I met these people in Paris and what did I do?" I smiled and continued on my way "he says.
After reading this story about a young refugee who became a chess champion and wrote a story about it, Pierre-François Martin-Laval wanted to "give them consideration". "So that we realize the appalling decision to leave his country because we are in danger of death," he adds. "I used the camera as a weapon to say what I finally had on my heart," said the director, who claims to deliver his most personal feature film with Fahim . In the film, the young refugee is played by Assad Ahmed. In the cast, we also find Isabelle Nanty but also Gerard Depardieu.