An exploration of teen sexuality through the eyes of a young girl, by the adept and accomplished Canadian Actress, Writer, Artist, Producer, Director – Sophie Lorain.
Slut in a Good Way (Charlotte a du fun) is a Canadian comedy/drama film from Quebec. The film received three Pris Iris nominations at the 2nd Pris Iris in 2018: Best Supporting Actor (Anthony Therrien), Revelation of the Year (Romane Denis) and Best Casting (Lucie Robitaille).
An exploration of teen sexuality, the film stars Marguerite Bouchard as Charlotte, a teenage girl who is shocked when her boyfriend breaks up with her by coming out as gay. After discovering that several attractive guys work at the local toy store, Charlotte and her friends Mégane (Romane Denis) and Aube (Rose Adam) apply for part-time jobs there.
One tipsy evening, Charlotte, the recently heartbroken, Megan, the anti-love anarchist, and Aube, the shy romantic, stumble into the ‘Toy Depot’. Charmed by the male employees, the girls fill out a job application and quickly become part of the ‘Toy Depot’ gang. Charlotte has found the guys to be particularly helpful in getting over her heartbreak, to say the least. But has she taken it too far? The film explores teenage girls’ desires, the blurred lines between sex and friendship, and the unfair double standard imposed upon girls. It is a story of desire, self-censorship, and self-assertion.
A few insights from my interview with Sophie Lorain.
What drew you to direct this film?
Sophie Lorain: I had previously worked with the talented writer of the film, Catherine Leger. In Canada, films are funded publicly, and because of the delicate subject matter, Catherine was facing difficulties getting the film made. I read the story and knew getting the funding would be challenging, but I wanted to be a part of a vision that was aspirational. Being courageous is something the actress in me is always eager to experience. My partner, Alexis Durand-Brault agreed to be the Cinematographer if we could get the funding. We agreed to film in Black and White to give the story a visually poetic signature.
What were some of the challenges you faced?
Sophie Lorain: After the funding, it was getting the right trio of girls that would be credible on the screen. The story deals with awkwardness, desire, truth, self-censorship, sexual awakening. Add on coming of age, and the fact that there are no adults in the movie(the girls were sixteen when it was filmed), it was imperative that the girls be gutsy actresses and they had to all get along. Everyone had to audition. I had personally worked with Marguerite Bouchard, Romane Denis and Rose Adam on previous projects, but never with the three together. The girls had never worked together prior to Slut, In A Good Way. While we were holding the auditions, I overheard these girls laughing and having fun in the waiting room. At the time, I didn’t know who was laughing, I just knew they were the girls I wanted to work with. Also, the parents had to be well-informed on what the acting required and they had to be cool with everything.
What’s the next project for Sophie Lorain?
Sophie Lorain: My partner, Alexis Durand-Brault, and I have a production company together. We have some future film and TV projects we are working on where Alexis will film and I will be producer/director.
Who is Sophie Lorain?
Sophie Lorain is a well known name in the movie business and on the television screen in Quebec. Sophie studied at the prestigious Webber-Douglas Academy of Dramatic Arts in England,and the Theatre Francais de Toronto. She has starred in some of Quebec television’s most memorable series, playing in Scoop (1992), Omerta, ta loi du silence(1996) – winning the Meatrostar’s prize for best actress and a Gemini for best support – and Fortier (2001), portraying a troubled criminal psychologist with a dark past. Sophie is bilingual. She also acted in the 1998 thriller, In Her Defense by Hollywood director Sidney J. Furie, then an English madame in the Sherlock Holmes period piece, The Sign of Four(2001) by Rodney Gibbons. In 2001, Sophie was offered her first starring role in a feature film when she played in Denise Filiatrault’s L’odyssee d’ Alice Tremblay(2002), a comedy that plunged the viewer into the world of fairytales and fairies. Sophie shows another side of her talents in her next film Mambo Italiano(2003); she plays Italian seductress setting her sights on a cop with ghosts in his closet.
Slut, In A Good Way, Opens March 29.
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