This interview was conducted in French and translated by Linda Marric, it was therefore edited for clarity and length.
Please note that this interview contains spoilers for the film.
François Ozon has long been celebrated for his ability to craft compelling, multi-dimensional female characters—an increasingly rare feat in contemporary cinema. In his latest film, When Autumn Falls, he once again brings a deeply layered narrative to life, offering a story filled with moral ambiguity, complex relationships, and raw human emotion.
In this conversation, acclaimed French actor Hélène Vincent shares how she came to be involved in the project, the unexpected gift of landing a leading role, and the joy of working alongside actor and filmmaker Josiane Balasko on the film. She also reflects on the nuances of her character, Michelle, a woman whose past as a prostitute does not define her but instead shapes her unapologetic approach to life. With a sharp eye for realism and a refusal to adhere to black-and-white morality, Ozon’s film challenges perceptions of love, motherhood, and survival.
HeyUGuys: How did you end up working on this project with François?
Hélène Vincent: Well, I had worked with François Ozon on a very modest role in a previous film he directed called By the Grace of God.
And I was a fan of François’ films—it’s remarkable. He’s one of the directors who writes the most substantial roles for women. There aren’t that many who do, so we appreciate them. I really admired François’ work, and then he called me two years ago to ask how I was doing, and he said, “Hélène, I’m sending you a script. Read the role of Michelle.”
Well, my heart was racing. I thought, “My God, what is he offering me?” And to my great surprise, when I got the script, I realized that it was the lead role in the film—the soul of the film, really.
And I must admit, I thought, “I hope this is real.” It would have been such a disappointment if it hadn’t worked out. But in fact, it was a firm offer. So there you go, I don’t know what I did to deserve it, but in any case, it’s an incredible gift, an amazing opportunity at my age to receive such an offer.
I think that, since he wanted to tell a story from the perspective of two older women, the fact that I’m the right age, that I look the part, and that he knows me as an actress must have given him confidence in me.
HeyUGuys: You worked closely with Josiane Balasko. Had you worked with her before?
Hélène Vincent: Never, I didn’t know her.
Yet, she’s a bit younger than me, and she did theatre. And so did I— we were both involved in theatrical companies. But we were in such different circles that we never crossed paths, not once. And on this film, I must admit that on the very first day, we bonded immediately. It was… spontaneous, you see? A kind of mutual attraction, which was wonderful and really helped us. All we had to do was bring that into the film—it was already there.
HUG: Josiane is also a director. Have you talked about possibly working together on a project where she would direct?
HV: At one point, Josiane considered it. She asked me to read a script and asked if I would be willing to direct it. Now, despite the joy I would have had in doing a play with Josiane as an actress and me as the director, in my opinion, the script portrayed women in an awful way. It was about a man and a woman dealing with an incest issue.
Of course, the man was a complete scoundrel, but the woman was almost portrayed as worse. So I said no—that was too much for me. I know that in cases of incest, there can be a strange, terrible complicity between the man and the woman, but to conclude in the script that, in the end, the woman was to blame for everything? No, I wasn’t going to tell that story.
HUG: About Michelle—she’s a woman wounded by life.
HV: Michelle? Not really.
HUG: She’s someone with a past she may want to forget. Was it important for you to show the kind of person who emerges from having been a sex worker in the past?
HV: Well, your question surprises me because I don’t see her as a woman wounded by life. That’s not how I saw it. At one point, she was a pragmatic woman. At a certain moment in her life, she had a young child, no husband, and she needed to make money.
Apparently, she decided that the best way for her to earn money was to use her body, so she did. Marie-Claude, played by Josiane Balasko, made the same choice. But now, when the film starts, that past as a prostitute is far behind her. It only comes up two-thirds into the movie. For a long time, we don’t know anything about the conflict between Michèle and her daughter. We don’t understand why, but we can feel that her daughter resents her deeply.
What surprised me about Michelle is that she’s not broken by her past. She did what she had to do. We can debate it, but now she wants to live. She has retained her appetite for life. She’s fully present in the world, and it’s rare to see such stories told about women—especially older women.
She isn’t bitter or resentful. She acknowledges her past. She understands that some people find it unacceptable, but for her, it was a means to raise her daughter. And now she has the incredible joy of being a grandmother.
HUG: Did she love her daughter? Because we might get the impression that she loves her grandson more than her daughter.
HV: Yes, well, it’s just easier with her grandson. Up to this point, her grandson doesn’t know anything. Her daughter, however, does. At the beginning, she says, “We were in sync, the two of us.” And then, one day, how did her daughter find out? What was said at school? “Your mother is a whore.”
She took that in like a blow to the heart and was ashamed of her mother. From then on, their relationship was irreparable. I don’t think Michelle was a flawless mother. She probably thought, “You’ll understand later. Let’s move on.” But maybe, toward the end of her life, there’s finally room for real love, and that love is directed at her grandson.
Because with her daughter, it’s not possible—they’re at war. When her daughter comes to visit, every word she says is cruel toward her mother. That’s how it is. And Michelle, being pragmatic, doesn’t try to fix things. She lets it go. But with her grandson, she tries to rebuild, to reconnect with a maternal feeling, to be a good grandmother, and to think more about him than about herself.
HUG: Let’s also talk about Vincent – the ex con son of her best friend – and their relationship. He did her a favour, and not just in tending to her garden.
HV: Yes, and in the film, it’s quite ambiguous. Yes, there’s joy in it. When she tells Josiane Balasko that she gave Vincent money to open his café and bistro, her daughter asks, “Why did you give him the money?” And she simply says, “Because he did me a favour.”
That’s it. She doesn’t say anything else. It’s up to the audience to decide what they think.
HUG: Even the mushroom story—it’s ambiguous.
HV: No, I think the mushroom incident was truly an accident. I think so. But if you look at Michelle’s journey, there are accidents that happen, and, well, they turn out not so badly for her. From that perspective, she’s a completely amoral character. But, well, in the end, things work out, you know? She even tells Marie-Claude, “I have to admit, since she’s been dead, I… well, I feel lighter.”
And that’s the incredible talent in François’ films—the characters exist in this ambiguity. You can’t easily say, “This is good, this is bad.”
It’s like life—infinitely more nuanced.
Read Linda Marric’s interview with François Ozon about When Autumn Falls, Brexit and the future of French cinema in the UK here.
