How to Make a ‘Humanist Vampire’ Story, French Canadian Style
It’s easy to assume that if you’ve seen one vampire movie, you’ve seen them all. But sometimes a newfangled flick comes along and proves that the subgenre hasn’t been sucked dry just yet. Humanist Vampire Seeking Consenting Suicidal Person, directed and co-written by Ariane Louis-Seize, is a perfect example.
Set to be released in select Canadian theatres starting Friday, October 13, the French dramedy follows a frustrated young vamp named Sasha (Sara Montpetit, Falcon Lake). Uncomfortable with killing people for her own benefit, Sasha searches for unconventional solutions, eventually finding solace in a friendship with Paul (Félix-Antoine Bénard), a suicidal teen.
Following its Canadian premiere at the 2023 Toronto International Film Festival, Louise-Seize and Bénard spoke to Dread Central, revealing the origin story of the film’s unconventional title, as well as how the film connects to Hal Ashby’s dark comedy Harold and Maude. You can read the interview, which has been edited and condensed for clarity, below.
Dread Central: The name of this film, of course, attracted me. What was the basis for it?
Ariane Louis-Seize: The name came pretty early in the process, even before writing the script. When I pitched my idea to my co-screenwriter [Christine Doyon], I was looking for a title and she said, “Stop looking. This is your title.” Because the main idea was the vampire wrote in a Craigslist ad. And she was like, “This is the best title. This is it.” And we never changed it.
Yeah, it’s pretty eye-catching and it’s nice because I think it captured the tone of the film as well.
DC: What made you want to tell a story about a vampire who can’t be a vampire?
ALS: I’m a fan of vampire films, but less the big commercial side of it. I like when we dig into the internal struggle of the vampire and treat them like a human. I mean, they don’t exist…
DC: I mean, you never know.
ALS: But the fact that they are so old and so lonely because they can’t make friends. I also saw a connection between the vegan ethic [and vampires]. And when her fangs come out for the first time, for me, it’s like her sexual awakening.
So I find it interesting to make a parallel between a vampire [and a human] and treat her like a normal teenager. And I like coming of age as well, so it was the idea of mixing all of the things that I like and doing my own thing.
DC: What attracted you to the story, Félix?
Félix-Antoine Bénard: When you see that title, [Humanist Vampire] you’re like, “Well, I want to be a part of this.” And then just reading the role, it’s a beautiful role to play because it’s very different. It’s about not getting along with anybody, it’s very lonely, but at the same time, he’s intellectual. He is analyzing everything that’s happening, everything’s going through his head.
DC: You and Sara have such a beautiful chemistry. Can you talk a little bit about working with her and building that?
FAB: Yeah! Well, at our audition, we had no chemistry at all. At least we thought so…
ALS: Just if I can add, the awkwardness between Sara and Félix-Antoine was so delightful and I knew from this moment [I met them] it couldn’t be anyone else than those two. So it was funny when I told them that and they were like, “Really?” Both of them were sure that they blew the audition!
FAB: It was my first time having, I think, the chance to… [looks to Ariane]
ALS: Rehearse.
FAB: Yeah, rehearse and work with the director. Because I had never done a feature film before. So it was talking to Sara about what’s going on in our scenes, finding the right rhythm in every…
ALS: Detail.
FAB: Yeah, in every little detail! Like the “Emotion” scene with the [Brenda Lee] song. It was all about what time we [would] look at each other.
ALS: And really, we constructed all the choreography. We did it all three together in rehearsal. I think that’s why it works so well because it can be just a long and boring scene. But we managed to find all those little moments and all this tension building and the lightning.
But it was so easy to work with both of them. They are so clever and they bring a lot to their characters as well. Sometimes we had just one shot because we were in a rush to finish the day. And some of the big scenes between them, it was just one shot. You were so good!
FAB: Thank you.
DC: I want to know about shooting the scene with the bat. Was that a real bat? Was it an animatronic?
ALS: It’s a puppet and VFX, so it’s both. And we used a drone as well. So we mixed a lot of techniques, but no real bat was hurt during the shooting.
DC: It looked real though!
ALS: [to Félix] Did you think so?
FAB: Very real. It was great. But it was very weird because you had to imagine where the bat was. And there were a lot of people in the gym too, so everybody had to imagine the bat at the same place. So there was someone with a little laser to point where the bat was and everybody had to scream at the laser.
ALS: It was chaos shooting it.
FAB: There’s a shot where the drone is coming at me and I had to smash it with a racket. I felt so bad because it’s a cute drone! And I broke it.
ALS: But it’s better to hit a drone than hit a real bat.
FAB: Yeah.
ALS: If I can tell you a little funny story, when we presented the film in Venice, the scene was playing, people were laughing and a woman turned around and said, “Stop laughing, it’s not funny.” And after the film when we were going in the front to do the Q&A, she grabbed me and asked, “Did you really kill the bat?” I was like, “No, [it’s] a puppet!” She was so troubled by this scene, but I can reassure everyone that no bats were harmed.
DC: You were empathetic to the bats.
ALS: Yes, pretty much. It’s a cute animal, actually.
DC: I agree. I think they’re kind of misunderstood. I guess kinda like vampires.
ALS: I saw a couple of YouTube videos where a bat is eating a banana wrapped in a little towel. It’s so cute!
DC: In addition to bats, Humanist Vampire is also about suicide. How did you work to stay sensitive to that experience while also bringing in humor?
ALS: We didn’t want to address this matter in a judgmental way, and we didn’t want to [make] a big statement. We wanted to open more questions as to why people want to die. Is it a permanent way to feel, or is it, in some cases, just temporary?
We wanted to talk about it in a very sensitive way, [while also] breaking taboos about it. But some people, some, I don’t know how to say…
DC: Activists?
ALS: They read the script and made suggestions and we were really open to listening to what [they] had to say. But the response was really, really good and they made little suggestions.
I think at the end of the day Humanist Vampire is a luminous film, so I don’t think it encourages something bad.
FAB: It really shows that if you’re in a dark place, maybe you’ve got to find something to keep you going.
It’s about two characters that don’t feel in the right place and feel very lonely with people who are the same as them, vampires or humans. And they just find together and have this relationship that’s so beautiful, and it’s very optimistic.
DC: Yeah, I think so too.
Were there any romances that inspired you in creating that relationship between Sasha and Paul? I thought of a few films myself, including Harold and Maude, which is about two people who are both experiencing suicidal ideation in their own ways and they find each other and bond over finding a way to love life and find life.
ALS: There are some parallels with Harold and Maude, for sure. And the character of Paul was inspired, at some point, by that character. And when you think about it, Sasha is 68 years old!
I did another interview and they asked me, “If you had to do a double feature with your film, which film would it put with?” And I told them about Harold and Maude.
FAB: I thought about that movie too yesterday after watching the movie another time.
ALS: But for us, it wasn’t like a really romantic relationship more than two people who connect so much… You know that they will be together for centuries, but maybe not in a romantic way.
DC: Or maybe not right away.
ALS: No, maybe not right away. But I didn’t want to go there in the movie.
FAB: But I think it’s a strong point of Humanist Vampire, too. Because you’re leaving the viewer with a story that is not over. And it’s beautiful just seeing these characters finding each other and just stopping there.
DC: Do you ever see a continuation of Humanist Vampire? Because, of course, vampires live long lives.
ALS: Someone [else] asked me that question and I just [came up] with an idea. I was like, “It could be funny if those two had a child and he’s really bloodthirsty, and he goes out at night and makes a mess everywhere.” You know, the complete opposite of the story.
I was not planning to do a sequel, but who knows, maybe. I think it’s a good idea.
DC: Do you know the Before trilogy from Richard Linklater?
FAB: Yeah.
DCl: You could do that. You could do this one, then they’re parents, and then maybe they’re old and they’re actually going to die.
ALS: It’s a good example of a nice series.
FAB: Yeah, nice trilogy.
ALS: Usually we see sequels more with a big commercial hit. But yeah, it’s a good idea. Maybe. I’ll think about it!
DC: But what is next?
ALS: Right now I’m focusing on the promotion of the Humanist Vampire. But I’m writing another feature. It’s an adaptation of a theater play and it’s about people who decide to disappear from their own life without telling their relatives and the impact it has on the ones who stay.
It’s definitely a tragedy, but the characters are so colorful and the dialogue is funny as well, so it’s kind of a balance between tragedy and drama. And I really like when in tragedy you find comedy, and in comedy you find tragedy. It’s my way of seeing life.
Humanist Vampire Seeking Consenting Suicidal Person opens in select Canadian theatres starting Friday, October 13, 2023.
Categorized:Interviews
