“To all victims without a platform”: François Civil speaks out to support Judith Godrèche’s fight

François Civil supports Judith Godrèche. MAXPPP – CHRISTOPHE PETIT TESSON/TARDIVON JC

Actor François Civil gave his support to Judith Godrèche during an interview with Sud-Ouest on March 26, 2024.

"I am proud that the liberation of speech can come from the world of cinema". François Civil spoke about the fight ofJudith Godrèche, who accuses Benoît Jacquot and Jacques Doillon of sexual abuse. In the columns of Sud-Ouest, he congratulated the artist’s commitment.

Hardly the wave "MeToo cinema" has passed, the actor reaffirms his support for women and girls victims of violence in this environment. Judith Godrèche is fighting to talk about these abuses in the long term and to intrinsically change things in the sector. She began denouncing attacks dating from the early years of her career in December and shook the world of cinema during a speech given at the César Awards this year.

A necessary speech

"When listening to the testimonies of Anouk Grinberg or Judith Godrèche, we feel overcome by the thrill of history. What is happening is extremely positive, notes the 34-year-old actor to our colleagues.

Him denounces "a systemic problem", born in a fairly closed environment, where the games of fame and power are too often the masters. Fortunately, he salutes, "we are moving in the right direction with the appearance of new professions : I am thinking of intimacy coordinators, of referents harassment imposed on the sets by production companies…" even though there "n’there is no recipe miracle".

He hopes that cinema and the freedom of speech of actors, and especially actresses, can help combat sexism and sexual violence: &quot ;If cinema can be at the forefront of true reflection extended to all strata of society, to all victims deprived of a platform to express themselves, so much the better."

"He kissed twenty times in a row"

Painful nudity scenes, stormy relationship, forced consumption of alcohol… Three-time César-nominated actress Judith Godrèche returned in December to abuse qu&rsquo ;she would have suffered during her adolescence in a series on Arte.

As she brings her own teenage self back to life in this darkly overtones comedy, she returns to the traumas she went through in a world that was so violent. then, wore blinders.

The dark story begins with what seemed at the time to be an idyll: Judith, 14, meets Benoît Jacquot. For the actress, years later, this story is still difficult to talk about. With tears in her eyes, she remembers the teenager she was, "vulnerable despite a certain maturity".

Another no less problematic fact, the filming of "The fifteen-year-old girl" of Jacques Doillon, who played the man the actress was supposed to be in love with in the script. The director's companion describes very loosely regulated scenes: "He kissed Judith Godrèche twenty times in a row asking me what the best take was" .