Les Cahiers d’Esther will be adapted live for the cinema by Riad Sattouf

And the casting to find little Esther has already begun. Everyone can participate!

Riad Sattouf will reunite with Esther, but this time on the big screen.

While he has been working on a project with Les Inconnus for a while, the director and author of Esther’s notebooks announces that he is preparing a film adaptation of his comic strip. An adaptation in live action shots (or live action).

And the project is already far enough along that casting has begun. Riad Sattouf is looking in particular for future interpreters of Esther, who will have to be played at two different ages: between 9 and 13 years old, then between 18 and 22 years old. Her friend Cassandre is also wanted in these two age groups.

The casting must also make it possible to find the other important characters in the story: Tom, Esther’s lover (18-24 years old), Gaëtan, her little brother (8-11 years old), Antoine, his big brother (12-15 years old), as well as Esther’s friends, aged 18 to 24 years old.

“Don’t hesitate to share around you if you know someone who could be perfect. We’re counting on you: we want to discover the future legends of French and world cinema too!” announces Riad Sattouf.

Filming is planned from the Easter holidays in 2027, in Île-de-France. Riad Sattouf will direct the film alongside Elsa Amiel.

This cross-age casting suggests that the film will follow Esther over several years, from childhood to early adulthood, as the original comic book does. Published from 2016, Esther’s Notebooks tell the daily life and reflections of a young girl, from the age of 9 to the age of 18, through her anecdotes, her friendships, her family and her view of the world.

The comic, originally inspired by the stories told to Riad Sattouf by a young girl named Esther, has established itself as one of its greatest successes, with more than two million copies sold.

This will not be the first adaptation of the Esther’s notebooks. The series has already been transposed into animation for Canal+, with episodes directly inspired by Riad Sattouf’s albums.

The film does not currently have a release date.