My encounter with Raphaël Thiéry, with whom I’ve made three short films, is what inspired me to make this feature. Although in reality Raphaël is more extraverted than the character he plays, I nevertheless drew from certain aspects of his life to write this tale called The Dreamer. 
A one-eyed man with an unusual physique, he learned to live with rejection, as well as being treated with condescension, and mistrust. For the better part of his life, he divided his time between being a forest ranger, his theater company and playing the bagpipes in his traditional music group, until he was discovered one day by Alain Guiraudie, who cast him in his film Staying Vertical. Turning his atypical face into an asset, his being featured in movies has helped change the way people look at him.
I found this fact fascinating as it highlights a problem that we all deal with: How are we influenced by the way others see us? How does this power shape us? And especially, how can a single look suffice to transfigure and free us? This very question is at the heart of The Dreamer. When I film Raphaël Thiéry, I’m mesmerized by the paradox he exudes: immense tenderness in the body of a brute. Out of his discreet search for absolutes, his freedom devoid of toxic virility, his quest for love and his wistful melancholy, I wanted to create a modern-day Madam Bovary. 
There’s something elusive about his encounter with Garance. Her presence brings about a confusion that is bewildering and open to interpretation. In depicting their relationship through Raphaël’s point of view, I am trying to lead the audience to question the reciprocity between creation and love. Garance is going to help him discover himself, and allow him to believe that someone could be open to truly seeing him, maybe even find him fascinating, and perhaps even love him. Hence why we needed an Emmanuelle Devos, whose magnetic presence shrouds in mystery the true intentions of this successful contemporary artist. I wanted to anchor this romantic tale to ordinary things. Since my first short film, I like working with nonprofessional actors. There is something particularly tangible about their screen presence: they exude a raw poetry. Mireille Pitot, 92, a former seamstress in a sewing factory in Dijon, appears on the screen for the first time. For the character of Raphaël’s mother, she brings an unusual substance and funniness that acts as an unexpected counterpoint to the drama that is playing out.
Although Raphaël is a man of few words, he is able to communicate his emotions through his bagpipe. In this realm where much is left unsaid, music gives words to this man who isn’t eloquent, putting him, despite their social differences, on equal footing with Garance: this is also an encounter between two artists.
The Dreamer is a catharsis where pure wonder, laughter, and mystery combine to question the sheer power of love. What interests me isn’t the answer to the question, but the emotions it sparks.

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