CHATEAU (La Vie de Château)

Sunday, April 29 – 7:30 pm – Truffaut Theatre

West Coast Premiere | France | 2017 | Comedy | 81 min |  In French with English subtitles

Directed by: Modi Barry, Cédric Ido
Written by: Modi Barry, Cédric Ido
Cinematography: Antoine Monod
Film Editing: Flora Volpelière
Original Score: Nicola Tescari
Produced by: Christophe Barral, Toufik Ayadi (SCRAB Films), One World Films, M 141
Cast: Jacky Ido (Charles), Tatiana Rojo (Sonia), Jean-Baptiste Anoumon (Moussa), Gilles Cohen (Dan), Felicite Wouassi (Djenaba)
International Sales: MK2 Films

“My name’s Charles, like the Prince!” That’s his motto. Dapper, charming Charles runs a crew of hustlers who hang out around the Château d’Eau metro station in Paris’ ethnic 10th arrondissement, rustling up business for the countless Afro beauty shops in the ‘hood. Good-hearted Charles, however, has much bigger dreams — like getting out of the micro-mafia, buying his Kurdish friend’s failing barber shop and upholding the noble, manly tradition of a shave and a haircut. But doing a favor for a jealous rival sends our hero down a slippery slope, endangering both his reputation and his slick wardrobe. Jacky Ido (co-director Cédric Ido’s brother, from the ABC series The Catch), as the charismatic “Prince” Charles, leads a largely unknown ensemble cast in this small gem of a film, which offers up engaging characters, a humanizing peek into the onerous immigrant experience, and a snappy slice of life in one of Paris’ more colorful and rarely depicted neighborhoods — le Château.

Writer/directors Modi Barry & Cédric Ido make their feature-film début with Château, which has been screened to great acclaim at the Toronto, Chicago and London Film Festivals. Barry previously directed the short Carpe diem (2005). French-born Burkinabe Ido has appeared in several films as an actor and his directing credits include three shorts, the superhero saga Invincible (2013), Hasaki Ya Suda (2011), and Un ‘Stains’ de musique (2009).

Presented in Association with: MK2 Films