The spire of Notre-Dame de Paris collapses, April 15, 2019 -
MALLET THIERRY / SIPA
On April 15, 2019, a fire destroyed the framework of Notre-Dame de Paris.
This Tuesday evening, TMC is broadcasting a documentary produced by Jules and Gédéon Naudet who hold out their microphones to the actors and spectators of the event.
"It was the first time that a firefighter spoke to us about fire as a living entity," reveal the two brothers to
20 Minutes
.
On April 15, 2019, Jules and Gédéon Naudet were in New York.
Like much of the world, the two brothers followed, live from their computer, the fire in Notre-Dame de Paris.
If they were "deeply affected" by this event, the directors were especially very surprised by the emotion caused by the flames around the world and in particular in the United States, where they live.
"We felt that the Americans were deeply shocked and we did not understand why," they tell
20 Minutes
.
Tonight, TMC broadcasts their original documentary in which the voice is given to the actors and the closest spectators of the drama.
Why make a documentary on the Notre-Dame de Paris fire?
Jules Naudet
: First of all, we talked to our friends the firefighters in the weeks that followed and who told us the stories inside.
There were some extraordinary stories that we had not heard, it was the first desire.
Then there is this glimmer of hope which is even more there because there was no loss of human life, unlike September 11 or November 13.
It was a fantastic example to be able to tell such a beautiful story about people who fascinate us.
Again, is it humanity that you wanted to put at the heart of this documentary?
JN
: What fascinates us about firefighters is that basically, it's ordinary people who do extraordinary things in an extraordinary moment.
This is heroism for us.
But at the same time, when you dig, behind that uniform, there is a father, a mother, a husband, a wife, a son, a daughter.
This is what reinforces this courage, telling yourself that these are people like us but who manage to surpass themselves and do something amazing.
Gédéon Naudet
: Firefighters are extraordinary because they are fighters, knights full of courage, but there is also another level which is very important for us: they are knights against cynicism.
Since September 11, we have been making documentaries only against the cynicism that constantly tries to enter our lives, our skins, which dirties everything, which puts everyone in doubt.
It's true that firefighters, for Jules and me, are people who say goodbye to their husbands, wives and children every morning knowing that they may not come home.
They are ready to sacrifice themselves so that, already, is a completely crazy notion.
But there is the symbolism for Jules and me that is so important.
Despite themselves, they are among the finest fighters against cynicism today.
We see plans with a drone, videos filmed with a smartphone, images shot on the shoulder and even animated illustrations.
How was the work of collecting the images done?
JN
: This kind of documentary is a small summer camp that is formed with people who have a lot of talent.
To find the images, we have one person in particular who has been with us for several projects, Morgane Barrier, whose job is to find all these images.
She went door to door on Île de la Cité, Île Saint-Louis and all the surrounding areas to find all these nuggets.
The firefighters filmed images, they have camera crews, the Elysee Palace had also filmed, the police headquarters also with drone images.
Above all, we wanted to be able to provide geographic landmarks, because it's true that if we don't know Notre-Dame, we get lost.
And Gideon found these two extraordinary people.
GN
: The production house that helped us make the film put us in contact with Jean-Paul and Jean-Sébastien Schifrine, a father and his son who are cartoonist and animator.
This is the first time that father and son have worked together.
The dad made timeless drawings of Paris with its roofs and the son is a computer animation maniac.
For this project, they decided to work together and it was extraordinary.
Even if the fire is dramatic, can we say that you approached the making of this documentary in a different way than those about September 11 and November 13?
JN
: It took less time because it was easier to contact people because the firefighters are an organization.
And above all, there was not this loss of human life which is much more complicated to deal with because we want to be sure that each image corresponds, that we do not offend anyone, that we have spoken to everyone. .
If we are talking about the last moments of a life, there is a very great responsibility.
There, there is the responsibility of telling the facts well, but it is simpler and less emotionally heavy for the people who tell the story and for us, to immerse ourselves in them.
Is there something that particularly surprised you during the making of this documentary?
GN
: At first glance, we don't think of firefighters as great poets and there, they spoke to us in an extraordinary way about their relationship with fire.
It was the first time that a firefighter spoke to us about fire as a living entity.
They spoke of it to us like a monster, a dragon.
The image of the firefighter has changed again in our heads, it is not just a modern man or woman but it is also somewhere a kind of knight with this vision of the spooky dragon.
That was the first time.
We realize in fact that the military have an almost medieval relationship with fire.
When you conduct your interviews, do you have to follow up with the speakers or do you just tell them “tell us”?
JN
: It's a mix of the two.
There are people who are ready to talk more easily than others.
For some, we launch them by telling them "here it is, it's morning, how's the morning going?"
We can not interrupt them for two hours and then we will come back to specific times.
This is where, with Gideon, we are this kind of weird creature, a body with two heads.
Me, I do the interviews and write down the questions and call me back.
It is very complementary.
GN
: Jules does the interviews in a very weird setting for people, which impresses and terrifies them in the first five minutes.
We put them in a completely black room, the whole team is behind a huge black flag.
All they have in front of them is the teleprompter where they just see a screen with Jules' head on it, like a Zoom or a FaceTime.
There is a camera behind the screen and that's why, as a result, people look directly at the audience in the eyes.
JN
: These interviews are very long because they can last three, four or five hours for some.
They are completely cut off from the world in terms of sound and light, they see neither the cameras nor the technicians.
It becomes a bit of a therapy session, it becomes easier to dive back into it minute by minute of what they felt, what they heard.
It's a fairly effective technique that we wanted to develop on several projects and it really frees people up once they are confident, to speak more freely.
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