Jérémie Sein – L’Esprit Coubertin: “In these games, reality has surpassed fiction”

The director of this successful sports comedy obviously watched the 2024 Olympics and shares his informed opinion on the events.

Who better than Jeremiah Sein to talk about the 2024 Olympics? With The Coubertin Spiritthe director signed a few months ago a comedy as hilarious as it is absurd about the journey of a shooter during the events. A bit of a virgin, but totally brilliant, his hero played by Benjamin Voisin became a few days before the end of the competition the last chance for a gold medal for the country. Mocking, the film revealed all the admiration of the filmmaker for the sport and the competitors. At half-time of the Olympic fortnight (in the middle of the volleyball quarter-finals between France and Germany), we decided to call him to talk about the French victory, the main events and his passion for slightly cracked athletes.

Jeremiah, The Coubertin Spirit was a very witty and insolent satire of the Paris Games. Did you watch the events?

Yes! Absolutely. I did The Coubertin Spirit partly because sport is a real passion – I find it suspicious when I hear filmmakers explain that they are filming a subject they don’t care about. We film what we love. I have been watching the games since the beginning. On TV but also live: I was offered a place for the 100m final last Sunday and it is a moment I will remember for the rest of my life!

We thought a lot about your film while watching the shooting tests. Paul Bosquet, your hero played by Benjamin Voisin, was the “world champion of shooting”. Did you thrill when you saw Camille Jedrzejewski win silver?

Of course. It was very moving. For the record, when we started scouting locations for the film two years ago, we came across Camille training! How classy!

Have you seen moments or athletes that reminded you of The Coubertin Spirit ?

Not so much. The Turkish shooter with his resting glasses was still phenomenal. He also had this punchline which I find great: “I don’t need this gear, I’m a natural.”… Paul could have said something like that. There was the very cool, very charismatic South Korean shooter, with her daughter’s teddy bear sticking out of her pocket. But to be honest, I didn’t see any Paul Bosquet – except maybe in archery: Baptiste Addis, with his bandana in his hair, looked fantastic.

It’s true that we saw some very strong characters emerge during these games. The Le Brun brothers for example…

That’s crazy! A friend sent me text messages during their matches to tell me that, now that they are famous, they would definitely have their own TV biopic! As soon as you know their story and you see them play, it feeds your imagination. And more generally, on certain aspects, reality has totally surpassed fiction.

What are you thinking about?

On Sunday, I was able to attend the athletics. When I discovered the big cardboard heads of the athletes carried by the spectators in the stands, I told myself that if I had had this idea, I would have done something with it in the film. I imagined the public wearing Paul’s head, a bit like in Eyes Wide Shut… It would have been beautiful. And then I saw this Australian jumper, a young evangelist who writes and draws her competition while she is doing the tests. She draws herself crossing the bar, running on the track… And when she is on the jump, we hear her say “Thank God”. She is a fascinating character. Next to her was the Ukrainian world champion who takes a little nap between her jumps. She does her competition and then buries herself in her sleeping bag, like in an airplane. I admit that sometimes I looked at these games as a reservoir of attitudes and fictions. Two or three times, I said to myself: “Ah, if only I could have had that idea!” I had also had an idea a bit similar to the Australian jumper’s notebook. Paul Bosquet originally had a small notebook in which he made summaries of all his shots. There is only one scene with it left in the film. But if I had seen the Australian before, I would probably have made something more dramatic and brought back some narrative.

The Coubertin Spirit: exceptional Benjamin Voisin (criticism)

Soft toys, drawings, the notebook… You mainly note things that relate to childhood.

This was the thesis of The Coubertin Spirit. Everything that has to do with the Games brings back a childish side. And I think that everyone lends themselves to the Games a little for that today. If we look at something other than the events, the world seems terribly distressing. We are on the verge of war, there is a crash looming…

You were talking about the pleasure you get from following these Games. This pleasure also comes from the fact that we win. That’s the big difference with The Coubertin Spirit where you described a France without medals.

Let’s be precise: in the film, France didn’t have a gold medal! But it’s true that France’s record today and in my film don’t have much in common. And that’s much better! That said, be careful not to get too carried away either. Even if we beat our record, our results are consistent and quite logical compared to Beijing. Proportionally, we’re doing well, but some disciplines were a bit disappointing. In fencing, we didn’t manage to get what we could have hoped for. It’s interesting: we’re good individually, but less so as a team. It shows that these are structural problems and strategic choices… As Ludig would say in my film: “All other rich countries are good at fencing”. In Kayak we should have won gold…

What was your favorite thing to see over the past week?

Live, objectively, the 100-meter final. In front of my TV, there was ping pong and the Le Brun brothers. Félix has incredible charisma. On another level, there was swimming. I’m not a big fan of the discipline on TV, but what Léon Marchand achieved was magnificent. Out of the ordinary. His race was crazy, especially with the crowd behind him. I also liked watching the surfing, with the wave of Pacification in addition… But the craziest thing was the judo of course and especially the team match! Honestly, this final fight was Street Fighter. The wheel that stops on 90kg, kumite! I almost expected to see Jean-Claude Van Damme and Bolo Yeung arrive to deliver the last round. It was crazy!

The fact that these Games are taking place in Paris also changes a lot of things…

Yes. Fencing at the Grand Palais is magical. In Tokyo, there was a poetry linked to the void because it was Covid and we had the impression that the athletes were settling their scores almost behind closed doors – it was beautiful. Shooting on the Esplanade des Invalides is magnificent. And that probably plays on my impression of having rediscovered a childish excitement for the Games. In Tokyo, the atmosphere was completely different. I followed Rio in a time-shifted manner. Personally, my great memories of the Games are Atlanta 96. It was the era of mega stars with Carl Lewis, Michael Johnson and the dream team… Today, I find a comparable thrill. Mythology in many places. Léon Marchand has something unique, the Le Brun brothers too… but what I particularly like is that, beyond the French, the spotlight is on the gestures and performances. And in a very paradoxical way, it seems easy. It’s like Federating in tennis, or Zidane in his prime. What the athletes accomplish seems simple, they seem to achieve their effects effortlessly… Mahuchick’s jump for example seemed easy. Everything is untied, linked, everything seems obvious… it leads me to go a little outside of the sports I know well like football or rugby sevens to take an interest in those I’m not usually into. Archery was crazy. The gust of wind, the stress, the stakes… there is a plastic beauty that is often astounding.

You have seen some events live and others on your TV. What do you prefer?

Live, the tension is enormous. Before the events, before the throws, the silence that falls creates enormous tension. We are in the athletes’ bubble. We can hear the breaths, the screams, the friction. But I admit that I am a couch potato. And the advantage is that behind your TV, you can choose, you can manage the simultaneity unlike live where you are alone with your binoculars.

Last obligatory questions: what did you think of the opening ceremony?

I thought it was great. Everything. There was panache, generosity, madness. I particularly liked the sequence with Gojira, its Grand Guignol aspect and very spectacular! It was crazy. I had been able to see the Starmania de Jolly, and I had already been impressed by the generosity of the show. I suspected that this opening would be fabulous, but it kept all its promises. My only downside is the parade of nations on the water. It is very beautiful, but in a stadium when all the delegations pass one after the other, we have the whole world in one piece. Symbolically I find it stronger. But it is a detail…

And are you ready for the Closing?

I am a fan of Tom Cruise. I could watch him walk down a hallway with his back to me. So yeah, I’m very curious to see what they’re going to come up with…

The big winner of the 2024 Olympics? It’s Snoop Dogg!