"When mental degeneration sets in, we quickly talk about people in the past tense."
Interview In "A feu doux," which won an award at the last Venice Film Festival, American director Sarah Friedland observes a patient suffering from Alzheimer's with dignity.
Interview by Xavier Leherpeur
Director Sarah Friedland and Kathleen Chalfant, the lead actress in "On Fire," in June 2025 in Los Angeles. ROB LATOUR/SHUTTERSTOCK/SIPA
Ruth, 85, has just been placed by her son in a specialized institution for elderly people suffering from mental confusion. Between loss of bearings and resilience, she finds new bearings and ends up beginning the last part of her life in a form of serenity. With "A feu douce," her first fiction film (acclaimed by the awards for best film, director and actress at the Venice Film Festival Orizzonti section), Sarah Friedland, former assistant to Steve McQueen and Kelly Reichardt but also a video choreographer, creates a sensory and luminous film about the character of Ruth, played by the immense Kathleen Chalfant.
For what reasons, including personal ones, did you choose this subject which does not yet concern you?Sarah Friedland Most films about older people tell of decline. The end of life. That moment when you are no longer yourself. I wanted to approach the theme from a different angle. To…
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