Interview taken from ROLE/PLAY, a special INDIE edition created in partnership with Chanel, exploring the transformative power of fashion in film.
Suzy Bemba didn’t come to Hollywood to play by its tired script. Hailing from Diou, France, Bemba was training as doctor, and—fittingly—a dancer, before making her name as Flora in French-Belgian TV ballet drama L’Opéra (2021-22).
But last year was her most momentous to date: landing a lead role in Catherine Corsini’s Homecoming (Le Retour), star- ring in Anthony Chen’s Sundance-premiered Drift, and most notably, her “favourite character ever” in Yorgos Lanthimos’ outlandishly eccentric, Oscar-winning Poor Things. As Toinette, the defiant iconoclast who introduces Bella Baxter to world-opening ideologies and the radical tenderness of female friendship, Bemba embodies a fiercely socialist and feminist queer Black woman, whose nuance and resistance resonate with her profoundly.
As a co-founder of the French professional support group, Actors’ Association (Association des Acteur.ices, ADA), she is a vocal advocate for equity within the French film industry. With a fusion of intellect and artistic finesse, Bemba’s parallel pursuits in medicine and acting paint a portrait of determination and ambition.
FIRST EVER ROLE…
Mother of my dolls.
FIRST FILM ROLE…
Bintou, a stubborn young teen.
DREAM ROLE…
Someone strong and willing to do anything.
THE CLASSIC FILM MOST DUE FOR A REMAKE…
The Children’s Hour. Well … not “most due” but I wanna be a part of it 🙂
IF YOU COULD GET LOST IN ANY FICTIONAL WORLD, WHICH DIRECTOR WOULD YOU TRUST TO DESIGN IT?
[Yorgos] Lanthimos.
IS IT HARDER TO SHED A CHARACTER OR STEP INTO ONE?
Shed, but I like to think that every character stays slightly stuck under my skin.
WHAT’S THE MOST CHALLENGING SCENE YOU‘VE EVER FILMED?
Le Retour (2023), a scene in which I argue with my pretend mum.
WHAT’S YOUR PROCESS FOR BUILDING CHARACTER?
Watching documentaries around the fictional world of my character, building moodboards and playlists on my phone, keeping notes to write anything that revolves around her.
HOW HAS WORKING WITH DIALECT COACHES HELPED YOU SHAPE A CHARACTER’S ACCENT?
I worked with a dialect coach on Drift and Poor Things, both in a very different way. In Drift, I had to have a Liberian English accent, so I focused on finding a tongue position that I could use for every line or potential improv. It was mainly phonetic. In Poor Things, we worked to have an accent that could not really be identified.
PERIOD DRAMA OR SCI-FI FUTURE?
Drama.
LINEAR OR NON-LINEAR?
Non-linear.
PROTAGONIST OR ANTAGONIST?
Protagonist.
SINGLE-LOCATION OR JET-SET ADVENTURE?
Both.
Photography DANIELLA MAIORANO
Styling RACHAEL RODGERS
Fashion CHANEL
Hair YUMIKO HIKAGE
Make-up MIKI MATSUNAGA
Production RACHEL BIGELOW
On-set Production JONAS FARRO
Set Design KÉNIA RAPHAËL
Styling Assistant JANNIS JELTO WITZEL
Hair Assistant KATRIN SACHENKO
Photo Assistant MATHEUS AGUDELO
