Ponette (1996)

Director:

Jacques Doillon

Writers:

Jacques Doillon (written by)
Brune Compagnon (scenario collaborator: for first draft)

Release Date:

14 March 1997 (USA)

Genre:

Drama

Plot:

An extremely captivating movie on how a little girl copes with her mother's death. She withdraws from all the people around her...

Plot Keywords:

Death | Little Girl | Hospital | Preteenage Heroine | Mother Daughter Relationship

Awards:

9 wins & 3 nominations

Cast

Victoire Thivisol	...	Ponette
Delphine Schiltz	...	Delphine
Matiaz Bureau Caton	...	Matiaz
Léopoldine Serre	...	Ada
Marie Trintignant	...	La mère
Xavier Beauvois	...	Le père
Claire Nebout	...	La tante
Aurélie Vérillon	...	Aurélie
Henri Berthon	...	L'Instituteur
Carla Ibled	...	Carla
Luckie Royer	...	Luce
Antoine du Merle	...	Antoine
Marianne Favre	...	Marianne
rest of cast listed alphabetically:
Hadrien Bouvier	...	Extra
Benjamin Lemaire	...	Anthony

Directed by
Jacques Doillon

Writing credits
Jacques Doillon		(written by)
Brune Compagnon		(scenario collaborator: for first draft)

Produced by
Christine Gozlan	....	executive producer
Alain Sarde	....	producer

Original Music by
Philippe Sarde

Cinematography by
Caroline Champetier

Film Editing by
Jacqueline Fano		(as Jacqueline Lecompte)

Casting by
Christel Baras
Sophie Blanvillain
Antoinette Boulat
Brune Compagnon
Lola Doillon
Ève Guillou
Marick Hermet
Magali Montoya
Sandrine Revet

Production Design by
Henri Berthon

Makeup Department
Laurence Azouvy	....	makeup artist: Marie Trintignant (as Laurence Azouvy-Jarriau)

Production Management
Eric Aufèvre	....	assistant unit manager (as Eric Aufevre)
Laurence Diaz	....	assistant unit manager
Pierre-Alban Guyot	....	assistant unit manager
Philippe Robine	....	assistant unit manager
Florence Sempé	....	unit manager

Second Unit Director or Assistant Director
Marie de Laubier	....	assistant director
Sandrine Revet	....	second assistant director
Emmanuel Rigaut	....	third assistant director

Sound Department
Patrice Birzin	....	cable person
Pascal Chauvin	....	foley artist
Pascal Dedeye	....	assistant foley artist
Michel Filippi	....	post-synchronisation
Dominique Hennequin	....	foley artist
Dominique Hennequin	....	post-synchronisation
Dominique Hennequin	....	sound
Jean-Claude Laureux	....	sound editor
Jean-Claude Laureux	....	sound
Jean-Louis Lebras	....	boom operator (as Jean-Louis Le Bras)
Francis Perrard	....	stereo sound consultant: Dolby (as Francis Perreard)
Brigitte Taillandier	....	assistant sound
Nathalie Vidal	....	assistant sound editor

Camera and Electrical Department
Julien Hirsch	....	camera operator
Jean-Bernard Josko	....	grip
Emilie de la Hosseraye	....	still photographer
Lionel Rigothier	....	assistant camera
Christian Weyers	....	gaffer

Editorial Department
Saskia Berthod	....	editor trainee
Gerard Savary	....	color timer

Music Department
Hubert Bougis	....	orchestrator
Michael Davis	....	musician: violin
Keith Harvey	....	musician: cello
David Snell	....	conductor
Peter Strosser	....	musician: piano
John Timperley	....	music editor

Other crew
Valérie Arroyo	....	administrator
Cécile Cabel	....	production secretary
Ophélie Gelber	....	assistant: instructor for children
Kris Portier de Bellair	....	instructor: children acting
Muriel Robine	....	production secretary
Eva Simonet	....	press agent
Odile Sogno	....	assistant: instructor for children

Production Companies

• Les Films Alain Sarde
• Rhône-Alpes Cinéma
• Centre Européen Cinématographique Rhône-Alpes (participation)
• Centre National de la Cinématographie (CNC) (participation)
• Canal+ (participation)

Distributors

• Bac Films (1996) (France) (theatrical)
• Atlantis Entertainment (1998) (Czechoslovakia) (theatrical)
• Argentina Video Home (Argentina) (VHS)
• Arrow Releasing (1997) (USA)
• Atalanta Filmes (Portugal)
• Distribution Company (Argentina)
• Fox Lorber (1996) (France) (DVD)
• RCV Film Distribution (Belgium)
• RCV Film Distribution (Luxembourg)
• RCV Film Distribution (Netherlands)
• Versátil Home Vídeo (199?) (Brazil) (VHS)
• Vértigo Films (Spain)

Other Companies

• DCA Audiovisual  sound re-recording
• Les Auditoriums de Joinville  sound post-production
• Microfilms  titles
• Samuelson Alga Cinéma  camera equipment provided by

Also Known As:

Ponette (USA)
Ponette (Argentina) (Spain) [es]
I mikri Ponette (Greece) [el]

Runtime:

97 min

Country:

France

Language:

French

Color:

Color

Aspect Ratio:

1.66 : 1

Sound Mix:

Stereo

Certification:

Malaysia:U | South Korea:All | Argentina:13 | Chile:14 | Peru:14 | Portugal:M/12 | Spain:7

Filming Locations:

Saint-Auban-sur-l'Ouvèze, Drôme, France

Company:

Les Films Alain Sarde

Trivia:

The magic spell the kids say, "Ta'ali Takum", is actually the "Talitha koum" of Jesus. In Mark 5:41, Jesus says the phrase "Talitha koum" (Aramaic for "Little girl, get up") to a dead girl, when he resurrects her.

Goofs:

Continuity: In the cemetery scene, Ponette is shown piling dirt onto her legs as she kneels beside the grave. In the next shot, her legs have no dirt and her pants are clean.

Quotes:

La Fille de l'Internet: You shouldn't be so sad.
Ponette: Yes, I should.
La Fille de l'Internet: Your mother was sad, too. She cried on her way to Heaven. God cried as He waited for her. When God was on earth as Jesus, He cried, too. But usually He was as joyful as a child.
Ponette: It isn't joyful to be a child.

Movie Connections:

Referenced in The Killing Floor (2007)

Children are NOT little grown ups.

"Ponette" (French, 1996): We learn that a child lost her mother in a car accident. Ponette (the child), like all children, tries to blend the various truths given her by adults, other children, teachers, books, rumors, churches...eventually arriving at her own version of Truth...a Truth that allows her to move on, with some peace. No one seems to know what to DO for her, and so, her search is solo. What most ASTOUNDS me about "Ponette" is: 1) It's written NOT by grown ups who see children as small adults, but as true children - with all the confusion, magic, and hope we seem to lose as we age, and, 2) the ACTING of Victoire Thivisol ("Ponette") is ABSOLUTELY AMAZING. She received numerous awards for this role, which upset some people - because she was only FOUR YEARS OLD at the time. "HOW CAN ANYONE HAVE TALENT AT FOUR?" Watch it for yourself. No one is beating her, no one is spraying lemon juice in her eyes, no one is tickling her feet...SHE is doing her own work. It's like she is channeling the next incarnation of Meryl Streep or someone. Since "Ponette", she has done two more films, including "Chocolat" (1999) with Juliette Binoche. She is now only TWELVE. I should live so long as to follow her entire career.