Sienna Miller Talks Nurturing New Talent Alongside Cate Blanchett With Bull-Jumping Short ‘Marion’
Cate Blanchett was, in Sienna Miller‘s words, “floored” by Joe Weiland and Finn Constantine’s short film Marion.
After premiering in Venice, the 13-minute-long film is now screening at its second international stop for the Toronto International Film Festival. It’s made Weiland and Constantine “the happiest boys in the world.” It’s made executive producers Blanchett and Miller just as elated — they see big talent in the two Brits.
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Marion follows a real-life bull-jumper, Frenchwoman Caroline Noguès-Larbère, who sacrifices a lot for her sport. She is poked and prodded at by the men around her while juggling the stress of motherhood and pondering her own femininity. Noguès-Larbère had never acted before Marion and doesn’t speak a word of English, but that didn’t stop Weiland and Constantine from seeing what she could do in front of a camera. The final product is a gut-wrenching short film that spotlights an ancient ritual still practiced by a fearless Noguès-Larbère, who also happens to be France’s only female bull-jumper.
Below, Miller, Weiland and Constantine talk to The Hollywood Reporter about expanding Marion into a feature-length film, putting it forward for the 2025 Oscars, and Miller’s own experiences with motherhood as an actor that makes her consider the movie a must-watch short.
Congratulations on your film. Where did Marion come from?
Joe Weiland: Basically, we came across the sport and we were fascinated by it — the difference between bull-fighting and bull-jumping in the sense that it’s this dance and this acrobatic display. So while digging into the sport, we discovered Caroline’s story. It was basically an article we read about her where she said: “I don’t face the bulls, I face the men.” And we thought that was a really interesting kernel of an idea to frame her story.
So we wrote a script based on just two articles we’d read about her, and moved to France, basically, to get it made and bring it to life. We met someone in Paris who basically was like, “I can find you where Caroline lives.” And within a week, we were on a train down to meet her with the script translated into French. We turned up at her farm, and she must have been like, “Who are these random English guys?” But we turned up with the script translated, and she read it in front of us, and basically turned to us and said, “You’ve captured my whole experience.” It’s a really beautiful moment and quite relieving as well for us. And then we turned to her and said, “We would love you to play the lead.”
That’s very cool, and speaks to a fearlessness as filmmakers; two English guys went to France with a translated script. Was that a daunting leap? You read up about bull-jumping, and you just did it.
Finn Constantine: It was daunting. Two English boys who don’t know the sport, it’s a culturally specific French sport. So though there was all this research and these hoops to jump through, which are very important, and we managed to get through them. I’ll speak for myself, I do think the fact that we could do it together enabled us to push through those moments. Because there were a lot of daunting moments in rooms with people where you don’t understand what’s being said, and you don’t know if you’re making progress or not making progress, and it’s quite hard to see the finish line.
Weiland: Fundamentally, to any filmmaker, making a film outside of their sort of comfort zone [and] the story, that’s the north star … we were drawn to the story. And the story only could be told where it was told, so it drove us there.
Casting Caroline, was it more for safety or practical aspects — to hire an actual bull-jumper — or were you just so enamored by her story that you thought she was the perfect fit?
Constantine: To be honest with you, it was the latter really. We were so taken back by her and her story and the way that she is, that the only real option was for her to play herself. And then of course, there is the technical side of it, which is no one else could do what she can do. We wanted to film that in as true a way as possible. So those two things married up perfectly. But with her being the central character of the film and it being her story, it was important to us that she played herself.
How was that experience filming it? That must have been a cool day.
Weiland: Yeah, for the live performance, because the end sequence of the film, when she walks out to the arenas, that’s all real. That was shot on six cameras within the live arena, so we positioned ourselves all in different lenses, different angles, to shoot it like a live broadcast, but with our theme of the film running through it … Throughout the other half of the film, it was quite a special relationship we cultivated with her because she doesn’t speak a word of English, and we’re by no means fluent in French. So it became, almost a dance where we communicate with her through movement, and then she started to pick up on English words, and we almost had our own shorthand by the end of it.
Constantine: It almost got kind of telepathic, in a way. I know that sounds very whimsical, but we were on set, and Caroline had never been on a set before either. She’s never acted before. She’s had a photograph taken due to the sport, but nothing on this scale. So it must have been a very daunting experience for her. But it was important to us that we really tried to close the set off as much as possible. It was another reason why we wanted to shoot on film, so that we didn’t have big HD monitors everywhere and she began to feel self conscious. It was just small details like that, that were trying to create an environment for her that she could essentially just be herself.
Tell me about the main themes you were trying to spotlight: misogyny, motherhood, femininity.
Constantine: The kernel of the story definitely was around a woman in a man’s world and misogyny, and that was the original concept of what we wanted to try to speak to, which is obviously very true to her experience. Then as the script developed, we introduced the character of the child, and slowly it also became about motherhood and how, actually, those two things are deeply linked and can be spoken about in the same way. It was interesting to see it evolve from this original idea into something else.
Weiland: Another major theme and feeling is endurance in this film, and resilience. With her daughter, it’s about the price you pay, or what you have to sacrifice to follow your passions as a mother. So we were in conversation a lot, actually, with our own mothers during the whole writing and process of this, because it resonated with them when we read it to them. Fundamentally, Caroline’s resilience was the engine of this film.
Sienna, what attracted you to this film?
Sienna Miller: I had executive produced Joe’s first short Gorka, which was nominated for a BAFTA, and had been very familiar with Finn’s work as a visual artist as well. So it felt like a natural progression to be involved. I’m very interested in developing things and producing at this point, and finding and nurturing new talent. And I can take absolutely no credit for any of the creativity or the plot of this film, but I was very excited to get involved. Then obviously I saw a few cuts of it, and felt immensely lucky to be even a small part of this. Because I think they’ve achieved something really difficult. It ticks every single box of what you would hope to achieve from a full feature in, 13-point-something minutes. I wanted to be along on this journey with them.
And can you speak to any of the themes we were just talking about? Those elements of motherhood and misogyny that Caroline has faced and then portrayed onscreen, did they ring true for you?
Miller: I think that any working mother can relate to the complications of what that experience is, and it is specifically unique to women. I see it all the time when I’m trying to negotiate contracts where I have to travel for work, and often it’s a battle. The fact that I have a child considered within a deal or housing. You’re uprooting a family in a way that’s very unspecific, often, to the male experience. So of course, I love that, and I loved the conflict of having her child appear at a moment that’s really completely impossible for her to navigate, and her having to navigate it. I think that a lot of women will see that and that will resonate. It is a very feminist film. It is about, like Joe said, it’s about resilience and courage and fortitude and all of these qualities which I think are very intrinsic in women. It’s not labored the way that it’s told as a story. It’s not shoved down your throat.
But I think you see through her courage and her pride, I think that’s what’s so moving. She’s really set up to fail by the other people who she’s in this team with. It’s devastating. I first saw it, and I really didn’t know what to expect. Obviously, it’s a complete departure from what Gorka was, they’ve gone and made a French film. These are two English boys that I know really well, but I was floored by it. I think it’s an extraordinary piece of work.
Joe, Finn, how was it getting Sienna Miller and Cate Blanchett signed on to Marion? How important was it for the film?
Weiland: It’s just an absolute privilege to work with Sienna and Cate on this. We feel completely protected and also just creatively aligned. It’s been so nice, especially in the process of, even in the script, speaking to Sienna and getting her view on it, and with edits and cuts, it’s just been an absolute blessing for us.
Constantine: We’re early on in our careers, and to have guidance from two absolute brilliant actors is unbelievable. To be able to turn to them and to say, “What do you think of this cut?” or whatever it may be, it’s gold dust. So we’re the happiest boys in the world.
Miller: But the fact that Cate saw it and without wanting to step on anyone’s toes, said, “I would love to be involved in this in any way and help get it out there.” I think that’s such a testament to the power of the film. Her reaction to it, she was just floored.
Are there any hopes for a full feature-length version of Marion one day?
Weiland: Yes, we’re looking to expand it into a feature. The main reaction we get from people seeing the film is, “I want to know more about her and her story and why” and the wider context. So that has given us the fire in our bellies to expand this, because we really think it’s such an interesting world to explore, and structurally it would suit a feature. So yeah, there are conversations already underway and it’s a really exciting thing for us to try and use the short as a launch pad.
Miller: But that being said, that was never the intention when they made it. Obviously they wanted to make a short film, and they have made a brilliant short film. And of course, [a feature film] would be a natural evolution, but that was never the agenda. I know that the short film world can be a little bit judgmental of the idea of developing something. Of course, if you have an idea that would suit a longer format, great, but that wasn’t the intention at all.
What place do short films have in the industry at the moment? What can they do for cinema?
Weiland: It’s been nice to meet other filmmakers that are using their shorts to try and springboard them. But it’s a hard medium. You have to really capture either a feeling or something in such a short amount of time. Looking forward for us, there’s a dream of hopefully getting nominated for an Academy Award, that’s the end goal of our shorts journey. But yeah, I think it’s just seeing it as a launch to people’s careers.
Constantine: There’s a format out there that can be played in Venice or Toronto and you can essentially just be like, “This is me. This is what I want to do. Here’s 10 minutes of my vision. See if you like it or if you don’t like it.” So on a wider scope, I think, shorts have a big place in the industry, and I think they need to have a bit more love and attention on them than maybe they do at the moment. Because where are the studios and everyone going to find the [talent] if not the shorts?
Miller: Everything they said is absolutely true. Obviously, the fact that this film has got into Venice and Toronto and many other festivals is a testament to their film. The spotlight that’s being shone on these two filmmakers that are beginning their career, the fact that we’re doing an interview with you, it all helps build toward the career and film that they want to have. And I think shorts are an incredible medium. I know that there are people that really watch them … But most importantly, I think it is the perfect springboard for launching a career and at least demonstrating what talent that you have.
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