PJFM In Conversation
Sylvie Ohayon, Director of HAUTE COUTURE
Lindy SpringFest 2023
Nick Jann, representative for l’Alliance Française de Philadelphie, interviews Sylvie Ohayon, director of HAUTE COTURE, about her deeply moving drama.
Esther is the renowned head seamstress at Dior on Avenue Montaigne and on the road to retirement. One day, she is mugged in the subway by Jade, a young woman from a lower-class banlieue of Paris. When Jade’s friends warn her that it’s bad luck to steal religious items from someone, she makes the daring choice to return the belongings to the dressmaker. Instead of calling the police, Esther, though ill-tempered towards her mugger, sees talent in Jade and does the unexpected by offering her an internship at her atelier. Regardless of their differences in class, the two women form a trustful, poignant friendship, one that allows them to release their emotional scars and pain.
Intensely moving with award-worthy performances by Baye and Khoudri, director Sylvie Ohayon’s timely drama is a relatable story about the unpredicted friendships that can save our lives. As Esther and Jade’s relationship proves, there is humanity in everyone, even if it’s hidden deep and far in the human psyche. Mothers and daughters, trust, love, and lots of clothes and fashion, of course, are just many themes in this delightfully touching Closing Night Film of Lindy SpringFest 2023.