July 7th

Movie making is a strange profession. You become very close to a group of people..cast and crew members..and then it’s over and everyone goes their separate ways. I’ve learned that one has to be intentional if friendships formed on a movie set are to continue. Geraldine and I have pledged to remain friends. I find her fascinating with off-beat taste in all things. A true bohemian who still fits in to any situation with any assortment of people. She’s intelligent, talented, curious, generous.

My friends from Georgia, Sharon, Howell and Megan Ferguson with Richard standing behind

A mother, father, child head stone

rehearsing my French dialogue with Christine Dejoux

a pensive scene with Daniel

detail of grave site arbor

My character works with Daniel's character to plants roses and jasmine around a small bench at the site of my grave

What a way to celebrate July 4th. So many friend gathered for the cocktail reception given by the Paris Film Festival to honor me. My bestest friend, Paula Weinstein and Hannah Rosenberg, her daughter and my goddaughter, are here for fashion week and she was so happy to see film director d’Euzhan Palcy, who directed “A Dry White Season” starring Marlon Brando, which Paula produced.

It was a wonderful surprise to have Rosanna Arquette show up unexpectedly with her beau, Todd. And Jackie Bisset was there too!!!  

With the wonderful film director, d'Euzhan Palcy

My friends from Georgia, Sharon Maxwell Ferguson and Howell Ferguson. They won the Paris trip which includes visiting the set, dining out with me and attending the film festival events. The Scissor Sisters concert was thrown. For good measure

Jackie Bisset and Charlotte Rampling...two beauties, huh?

Todd, Rosanna (Arquette), me, Jackie Bisset, Charlotte Rampling, Richard

Then we all boarded a bus to go to the Scissor Sisters concert

Paula talking to Megan

Nathalie Lafaurie talking to Vania Vadim and behind is Daniel Bruhl, Patrizio and Geraldine

Megan and her mother, Sharon Maxwell Ferguson, who is a G-CAPP board member

Ooops, missed the top of Ana's head but the legs are worth it and she was amazing.

still dressed

whew!!! People went wild

Jason and Ana

It was hard to believe Jason had just done a show in what must have been 105 degree heat. We all could ring our clothes out afterwards. As Richard said, the music was first rate, one of the best rock concerts he’s ever been too. The new album. “Night Work” is fantastic, and perfect to dance to and workout to. Jason sings like a hot angel, looks like Greek God an dances like nobody’s business!

Jason (AKA Jake) Sellards with Richard at dinner after the concert

Jason wih Vania Vadim

Jeremie Imbert, Olga Plemianikov, Philippe Caland

Hannah, Paula, Megan, Sharon and Howell

A group of Jason's friends and fans joined us. They were very sweet people. I love how they adore him.

Jeremie, Olga and Philippe

Happy 4th of July, all you compatriots. I haven’t blogged for awhile and that’s because Richard arrived in Paris and well, I’ve been otherwise occupied. It has been so much fun and here are some photos to catch you up a bit. But it’s not all Richard’s fault. We’ve been doing night shooting and that throws everything topsy turvy. But I have had some fine meals in some of Paris’s best and gone dancing a few times (no photos) and there’ve been events related to the Paris Film Festival —events honoring me. Like yesterday I did a Master Class in a small theatre for an audience…did it in French and then took my friends Sharon and Howell Ferguson, and their actress daughter, Megan, Richard and Philipe Caland to the wonderful restaurant in the Bois du Boulogne—le Pre du Catlan.

Tonight many of my French and American friends who are in Paris (including Paula Weinstein and Hannah, her daughter who is my goddaughter), and the Fergusons and Charlotte Rampling and Geraldine and her husband Patrizio, and Vadim’s family and Daniel Bruhl, and on and on—will come to a cocktail reception in my honor given by the Paris Film Festival. After that I introduce “Klute” (the festival has shown 13 of my films…yesterday I introduced “They Shoot Horses, Don’t They?”) and after that introduction we will board a bus I have rented and we’ll all go to the Scissor Sisters concert. I am soooo excited to see them live. The lead, Jason (aka Jake) Sellards is my friend—you’ve seen him in some of my previous blogs– and I have never seen him perform live and I hear they are totally amazing. After that we will all go to dinner!!

I have only 3 more days on the film. The last 2 are the most difficult. 8 scenes of heavy dialogue all with Daniel. It’s going to be fun and intense.
Monday night all the actors are throwing a “pot”–French word for happy hour with drinks and food for cast and crew. Different crews (camera crew, sound crew, set design crew) have been doing it every Friday. I have missed them all. Last Friday they danced till 3am I heard! Now why did I have to go and miss that? Oh yes…well, I was having fun too.

I will remember to take photos tonight. Maybe even Twitter!

The pool getting ready for us to have dinner at the bottom

Pierre and Guy moving the dinner table into pool

Script supervisor Nancy Rivas

Richard came to the set for lunch with his friend, filmmaker Philippe Caland

Last night we celebrated Guy Bedos’s birthday and Daniel Bruhl’s as well although his was earlier last week. We gathered in Guy and Jo’s apartment, a stone’s throw from were I am staying on Ile St Louis—the cast, director, producer and Guy’s family and friends.

What a fun time we had as the wine and vodka flowed!!! You’ve got to understand, 3 of our male stars—Claude, Guy and Pierre—are comedians, and not for nothing. They are seriously funny and we laughed till we cried…at least I did. How therapeutic laughter is!! Pierre told me there is a “Laughter Clinic” in Paris to help cure ill people.

It was especially nice to meet and get to know the wives of our co-stars—Jo Bedos, Ceyla Richard, and Catherine Rich.

Enjoy the photos.

Today, Sunday I have stayed in all day to write…actually, early this morning, I went out to walk Tulea and ran into Jo who was walking her puppy. She had on a down parka. I didn’t stay out long because I have no warm clothes. I hope this cold spell will pass before Richard gets here.

Stephane, our director, Guy Bedos, Christophe, our producer, Guy's PR rep, Claude Rich's wife, actor Catherine Rich

We also celebrated Daniel Bruhl's birthday with a cake

Jo Bedos, with the new puppy she gave Guy for his birthday.

Pierre and his wife, Ceyla, with the puppy.

presenting Guy with his cake

Claude being his usual dramatic self. Actually, I think he was singing a raunchy song that he sings in the movie, only not leaving out the final and most raunchy verse.

Geraldine and her husband, the Chilean cinematographer, Patricio.

Geraldine with actor Catherine Frot. Geraldine was so overcome when Frot arrived (she thinks she's one of the greatest actor's)

Pierre and Ceyla--she is Brazilian and fabulous!

Guy with his daughter, Victoria

Daniel came with several friends who came from Berlin and Spain to celebrate with him

We shot a charming scene today—Pierre, me and the dog—with Daniel Bruhl. I saw immediately what a wonderful and subtle actor he is. (He was the young Nazi in “Inglorious Bastards,” Tarantino’s film.)

He is 31 years old and has made more than 30 movies. He started as an adolescent. Pierre told me today that he has really loved every single scene he has filmed so far on this movie—which, he said, is unusual.

After shooting (I got off early) I took Tulea for a long walk. So long I had to carry her back cause it was hot.

In this scene my husband and I are interviewing Daniel Bruhl (he plays a German student of ethnology in Paris) as a possible dog walker because the impetuous dog keeps pulling on his leash and has caused my husband to fall. After much hemming and hawing and objecting to the fact that the young student is German (my husband’s father was shot by the Nazis in 1941) he agrees to try him out. Many of my longest and loveliest scenes are when Dirk—the character’s name is Dirk—and I walk in the park with the dog. The characters have a real affinity. He is the only one who knows that I am dying and he helps me prepare my grave.

Pierre, Daniel, and the dog--photo of Simone de Beauvoir behind!!

me, Pierre and the director Stephane

Kesso Andrau, my lovely assistant who helps with Tulea while I shoot

The three Germans on the set--

dig that tongue

Kesso and Tulea

poor Tulea, she attracts every dog

...and lovers

Lots of musicians along the Seine

houseboat restaurant on the Seine

i am totally transfixed by the structure of Notre Dame

I love that the underneath of the bridges are made of wood.

coal being transported on the Seine

A wedding on board a Bateau Mouche

There are more and more modern buildings in Paris.

The parks along the Seine have lots of statues. interesting ones.

Today is my grandson’s birthday. I will have to wait to call him cause he’s in school.

I am waiting to start another rehearsal here in the apartment with Daniel Bruhl and Christine Dejoux, the dialogue coach who is really wonderful. This time I’ll take a photo.

Daniel Bruhl

The dialogue coach, Christine Dejoux

Rehearsing with Daniel Bruhl who plays a young ethnology student studying the aging population in Europe

Rehearsing with Daniel Bruhl

This morning I took Tulea to the French dog groomer. Didn’t they do a terrific job? Very Francaise, n’est ce pas?

Tonight I am having dinner with Richard’s brother, Andrew. In the 1940s, their mother, the feisty Sylvia Perry, started a company called Peripole, that makes musical instruments, especially percussion instruments like drums, tambourines, triangles– for school children. I remember them well as a child growing up. Sylvia cares about young people learning music, how to play it and how to appreciate it. She is 91 now and still runs the company out of her office which she created in the garage of her cottage in the retirement home outside of Portland, Oregon, where she lives. Andrew, one of her four sons, now lives close by and helps her run the company. The factory that makes many of the specialized instruments, Bergerault, is in France, in the Loire Valley. They have been partners for 37 years . Every year for many decades Sylvia would come to visit the Bergerault factory and it’s owners—Colette and Gilbert Fergeau. Colette’s father founded the company and was a hero when, while a prisoner in a Nazi camp during WWII, made his unique percussion instrument out of cans and rubber. She will receive the French Légion d’honneur in August for her work in protecting the ‘patrimoine’—the family name and skills. Now Andrew Perry comes each year to visit the factory. This year he comes with his daughter Erin, 16 years old (and featured previously in my blog), and Cak Marshall, the educational director for Peripole . We all had dinner tonight at Brasserie Lipp.

We had a good dinner and a good time.

Colette and Andrew

Colette and Gilbert Fergeau

Me, Tulea, Erin and Cak

See you next time.