Released on September 22 in our theaters, “Stillwater” sends Matt Damon to the stands of the Orange Velodrome during a scene shot by an Olympique de Marseille match. The actor and his director come back to the set with us.
That was a little over two years ago. Sunday, September 1, 2019 to be precise. That evening, the viewers installed in front of the match between Olympique de Marseille and AS Saint-Etienne had a funny surprise when the cameras revealed the presence in the stands of Matt Damon.
But not in a VIP box alongside other guests. Right in the middle of the supporters, with a cap, a goatee and a look very close to that of the average American. What he embodies precisely in Stillwater by Tom McCarthy, in which his character goes to Marseille to try to clear his daughter, imprisoned for a murder she claims not to have committed.
And one of the scenes of the film, released this Wednesday, September 22 in our theaters, takes him to the spans of the Orange Velodrome, stadium of the Marseille club. As many had noticed from the cameras surrounding Matt Damon that day, the footage was shot during a real game, in order to take in the ambiance. Which was obviously as impressive as it was not easy to put together.
“It took a lot of planning”, answers Tom McCarthy when we talk about the sequence with him at the Cannes Film Festival, where Stillwater was presented in preview. “But what was it fun! That energy that we felt that night. When we filmed on match day – or rather in the evening – we arrived several hours before kick-off for get us settled in, and we could feel the stadium vibrate as it filled up. It was also playing time for us. “
“There was such incredible energy that we shot until late at night. And we had to capture what was going on. So if OM won, they won in the film. If they lost, they lost. on the screen. So we were like ‘Let’s see what’s going on. Come on OM!’ [en français dans le texte]. We’re glad they won, it was better for the film and its energy. In terms of filming, it was a big moment. “
If you go to Marseille, it is really an experience to live to go to a match
For Matt Damon, things were even simpler: “I had the easiest job in the world: I just had to go see the game”, he explains to us, laughing when we tell him about our astonishment to see him appear on the screen during the broadcast. “We were surrounded by actors, who knew the cameras were there and knew what to do.”
“But we felt like no one in the stadium cared that we were there, because everyone was watching the game. There was incredible energy. If you go to Marseille, it’s really an experience to have. ‘to go see a game. It was amazing. “
To see “Stillwater” and Matt Damon in front of an OM match, go to the theaters:
