Save or perish: is this film based on a true story?

Released in cinemas in 2018, the movie called Save or perishworn by Pierre Niney and Anaïs Demoustierwill be broadcast Sunday, October 9, 2022, from 9:05 p.m. on France 2. Realized by Frederic Tellierthis feature film features the character of Franck, portrayed on screen by Pierre Niney. Firefighter since the age of 18, he is happy in his job. He lives in his barracks with his wife, interpreted by Anais Demoustier, and he is the father of twin girls. One day, while he is in intervention, he sacrifices himself for his men, and wakes up in a hospital ward intended for severe burns. The film retraces his obstacle course to regain an almost normal life and relearn how to live.

In fact, this feature film is not directly based on a true story, but it is partly inspired by several real facts. “I became aware of ‘miscellaneous facts’, and I was deeply marked by the very strong stories of firefighters who had suffered serious accidents. Until now, most often, I had entered my film projects through the story whose dramaturgy was already there : for Save or perish, I had the background, the subject, the starting sparks. But not immediately the story. The tragedies experienced by these anonymous firefighters or the various severe burn victims that I was able to meet afterwards gave me the context“, explained the director.

Save or perish: “I like to offer stories that encompass the viewer,” said Frédéric Tellier

“I found dramatic articulations and landmarks by projecting a charactera firefighter, at the service of others who would have everything, and who would find himself badly burned, miraculously affected, but who would lose everything, and who would have to learn to live again. The interest of this story which begins in the heart of the firefighters is that it places the cursors at the maximum : with the character, we are immediately in the excellence, the requirement, the altruism, the solidarity and, when everything changes, we pass in the most brutal physical and moral pain. This double polarity prepares the resolution of the story in a very interesting way. I like to offer stories that encompass the viewer, put them to the test, and project them into the destiny of my characters.“, added Frederic Tellier

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