The Film Verdict: You mention in the opening scene that the idea originated with your producer, Kristina Larsen. How did that happen?
Claire Simon: Yes, she approached me because she had seen and liked my film God’s Offices, which was about Planned Parenthood. She thought it was important to tell the story of this hospital that treats all gynecological issues, including gender transition.
TFV: I must say, at the press screening I attended, there were a few walkouts during the operation scenes…
CS: Why is it people have no problem watching people get brutally murdered on screen, but this is too much for them? Those scenes are important to me because I wanted to give a visual identity to concepts that we’ve heard mentioned, like endometriosis, but don’t really know what they entail. It was also fascinating for me to see something like artificial insemination, which basically takes the sex act and divides it into segments. Broadly speaking, I wanted to show all aspects of the female body.
TFV: How were the reactions at the premiere?
CS: Very good. Only one person walked out, and I was told that when the movie ended, two men commented to each other “Well, that was tough to get through.”
TFV: Could they have been referring to the running time?
CS: I really don’t think so. I mean, the new Avatar is over three hours long, my film is 163 minutes. It’s shorter than most superhero movies.
TFV: How long was the shoot?
CS: Not that long, actually. I was there for six or seven weeks.
TFV: How did you decide which stories ended up in the finished film?
CS: The overall flow of the film sort of dictated that. Also, there was one doctor I had been shadowing, and those scenes just didn’t look as good as the rest of the material.
TFV: Was your own story always going to be part of it?
CS: Yes, it was, because I wanted to show the moment the doctor announces the diagnosis. They’re usually reluctant to have those moments filmed, because it’s bad news and there’s a voyeuristic aspect to it. Because I was both the director and the patient, I didn’t need anyone else’s permission to film that conversation.
TFV: When your films screen in Berlin, it’s usually in the Forum section. What makes it the ideal platform for your work?
CS: Now, don’t get me wrong. I love Forum, and I love [section head] Christina Nord, but I am a bit annoyed my film wasn’t selected for the Competition. I think there was some machismo at play there, because I have the dual disadvantage of being a woman and having made a documentary, even though it’s the purest form of cinema. Granted, sometimes my work has been a bit ahead of its time, but I do also think when most of the decision-makers are men, they can sometimes gravitate towards films that have a predominantly male audience. The same thing happened with my previous film, about Marguerite Duras. I thought it was perfect for Cannes, and they rejected it.
–Max Borg
