“I tried to forget”: Noémie Merlant talks about the sexist and sexual violence she suffered

Noémie Merlant was the guest of the show En Aparté this Tuesday, December 10. The actress made some upsetting confidences, returning in particular to the sexist and sexual violence she suffered victim.

© Screenshot Canal+ Noémie Merlant confided about the sexual and sexist violence she suffered during her youth.

IN BRIEF

• Noémie Merlant, director of the film 'Les femmes au balcon', addresses sexist and sexual violence with humor, inspired by her own traumatic experiences.
• The film, set in Marseille, features three women and their mysterious neighbor, exploring themes of freedom and resilience in the face of trauma.
• Discover how Noémie Merlant uses humor to deal with serious and personal subjects in her cinematographic work.

This is a very sensitive subject that is evoked in the film Les femmes au balcon. The synopsis is simple: it is about three women, in an apartment in Marseille, in the middle of a heatwave. Opposite is their mysterious neighbor, the object of all fantasies.However, they will find themselves stuck in a terrifying affair with only one desire: to regain their freedom. An achievement that was made in a humorous tone but Noémie Merlant explains that it was very important. Guest on the show En Aparté this Tuesday, December 10, she provided details on this subject. “Humor for me, it was obvious that I had to make a comedy, that I had to take on this dramatic subject that is sexist and sexual violence”, she began. Traumas that mark deeply.

Noémie Merlant tells a little of her story through this film. “Traumas that I experienced and that I had to externalize”, she continued, recalling later: “I'm not the only one to have experienced, there are many of us”. The feature film speaks a lot to the director since, in a certain way, she tells her story. “I actually lived in that apartment with Sandra Codreanu, who plays Nicole, for years”, she confided, adding later that the writing of this film éwas very important. 

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Noémie Merlant: “It was important to tell this story”

Traumas can be so significant that they become a large part of our daily lives and it is not Noémie Merlant who would say otherwise. “This story was born at her house, I ésuffocated at a point in my life when I became aware of all these traumas that resurfaced and the impact they had on my life”, she explained. The director claims that she had not made the connection between what she felt and what she had experienced. “The absence of libido, the panic attacks are related to traumas that I have experienced and try to forget by telling myself that it wasn't so serious after all”, she said, highlighting feelings that can impact many people.

Noémie Merlant used her own experience to make this film. “Suddenly, I went to live with the girls and the story was born from this desire for freedomé”, she confided. Like many people when they talk about a trauma, humor allowed them to free themselves and talk openly about what they were feeling. “It allowed us to listen to each other, to talk. It was important to tell this story,she assured later.  Nathalie Lévy then mentions the assault of which her guest was the victim after having worked with a photographer. &Aged only 17, the young Noémie Merlant has never forgotten. “I think everyone believes you. Your parents, your fiancé &agrave at the time, she says.

Noémie Merlant: “deep down, it's not the most important thing for them”

When she was the victim of this attack, Noémie Merlant spoke about it to her close ones but also to the agency she worked with. The young woman confides that she was able to understand their support but there is a major problem: we must not talk about it. “My parents called the agency. I was 17 and when they found out, they immediately yelled, but since he was also an important photographer, we told them that it wasn't serious and that I was overdoing it,” she recalled. Faced with this kind of reaction, their only solution was to make themselves heard. However, everyone seemed to think that it wasn't that serious. “I think it's not a question of believing or not, deep down it's just that it's not the most important thing for them”, continues Noémie Merlant.