Ahmed Sylla climbs Everest in the comedy “L’Ascension”, directed by Ludovic Bernard. The actor lived through complicated moments during filming and had lost no less than seven kilos on his return to Paris.
The Ascension : Ahmed Sylla on the roof of the world
Freely inspired by the story of journalist Nadir Dendoune, author of the book A loser on top of the world, The Ascension tells how Samy (Ahmed Sylla) decides to launch an incredible challenge for love. To prove his feelings to Nadia (Alice Belaïdi), this young man leaves Seine-Saint-Denis for climb the 8800 meters of Everest.
If his adventure is initially almost confidential, it ends up being followed by the whole of France. Kevin Razy, Waly Dia, Maïmouna Gueye, Moussa Maaskri, Amir El Kacem and Tiphaine Daviot complete the cast of the feature film, which brings together more than1.1 million spectators in French cinemas. A great success for this film whose shooting shared between Mont-Blanc and Nepal was sometimes complicated.
A grueling shoot
In the press kitdirector Ludovic Bernard explains that the shots on the Asian continent contained an element of improvisation, despite the location scouting carried out beforehand:
We retained key points but for the filming itself, we went on an adventure ourselves! We set off in the morning without really knowing where we were going, except that we had to reach another village four hours away! In this eight-hour working day, half was therefore dedicated to filming the scenes, knowing that in the evening we had to find a place to sleep and put down the equipment.
But for Ahmed Sylla, the hardest part of the shooting is the one that took place in Chamonix, a place chosen by the team given that there was not enough snow in Nepal. The actor says:
When we shot in Chamonix, it was after Nepal and it was oddly much more difficult because there was a lot of snow there. At the base camp in Nepal, the living conditions were not easy: no way to wash for 6 days, hours of daily walking but also the possibility of resting.
He adds :
In the Alps, it was tougher: we turned to minus 30° in the middle of the night, with frost on our suits. I would like to salute the work of the professionals who supervised us: there were times in Chamonix when I was really scared and their presence was very reassuring…
Seven pounds lighter
The comedian admits that his physique “took a hit” when he arrived in Nepal as he found himself in an “unfamiliar” environment. After several hours of walking, Ahmed Sylla passed out one day and was fortunately welcomed in a small mountain hut where he was able to regain his strength, since the inhabitants prepared him a noodle soup. The actor continues:
During a scene at 3000 meters, I had to cry and the tears came very naturally because my fingertips were completely frozen, burned by the cold. It was painful but I knew it served the story… In all, I must have lost 7 kilos during the shoot but I felt good when I got back to Paris.
