Tonight, OCS is broadcasting the first episodes of the Seventh Heaven series. But what is this series that lifts taboos on love and sexuality among the elderly?
WHAT IS IT ABOUT ?
When Jacques is placed in a residence for the elderly by his daughter Isabelle, he thinks that he is being sent to a death room. He is far from suspecting that he will meet Rose there, desire her and be desired like never before.
At almost 80 years old, both rediscover physical pleasure and love each other like two teenagers. This real fusion of bodies will upset those around them, question everyone’s libido and cause chaos in the residence. Their respective children are confused to see their parents having more fun than them. And the direction panics in front of this wind of freedom and ass.
Despite the reluctance imposed on them, will Jacques and Rose manage to love each other to the end?
Seventh heaven from January 19 on OCS.
A SERIES THAT DROPS THE TABOOS ABOUT LOVE AND SEXUALITY AMONG ELDERLY PEOPLE
Tonight, OCS is launching Septième Ciel, its new series on love at any age. Directed by Alice Vial (Loulou) on a screenplay she co-wrote with Clémence Azincourt and Clément Marchand (Askip), the series is carried by Sylvie Granotier and Féodor Artkine.
In this romantic comedy, the young lovers are not 20 or 30 but over 70 and live in a retirement home. Something to confuse the usual benchmarks.
It must be said that the love life of our elders is still a taboo subject. And what about the desire and sexuality of seniors who remain both poorly considered and almost invisible. Yet they still have an emotional life. Little known fact, 10% of nursing home residents have a sexuality.
While old age is often caricatured and the sexuality of old age almost non-existent in pop culture, the Seventh Heaven series seizes on this subject. To the question of whether to draw the curtain on sexuality after a certain age, the series obviously answers no and intends to demonstrate it.
Awarded the prize for the best series in 26-minute format at the La Rochelle Fiction Festival, the series tells us the passionate love story between Rose and Jacques, two almost octogenarians who live in the same retirement home.
When Jacques returns to the Résidence des Dunes, a residence for seniors, he is far from suspecting that he will find love in Rose’s arms. At 80, they will rediscover the pleasures of the flesh and love each other like two teenagers. A passionate romance that will of course confuse their respective entourages.
How to live your love story in a retirement home with imposed rules? How to find a double bed to share an intimate moment? How not to be complexed by a body that no longer functions in the same way? How to love yourself despite the eyes of others? These are the questions that Seventh Heaven tackles head-on to deconstruct the usual patterns.
Moreover, to speak of desire and sexuality, there is no question here of modesty or concealing the body. On the contrary, the series chooses to approach with humour, sensuality and seriousness this sexuality that our society cannot see. As such, Féodor Atkine and Sylvie Granotier form a sexy on-screen couple that goes against all preconceived ideas about old age.
During a press conference organized at the La Rochelle fiction festival, Alice Vial, the director of the series, explained in this regard, “Even if it means talking about it, it was not necessary to water down and really go there. The series speaks of love and of desire necessarily. We didn’t want to do things by halves.“. Intentions posed from the credits, with bodies shown without ambiguity.
Even if the main actors appear a little “younger” than what one would expect to see in a retirement home, Alice Vial assumes this bias. “We wanted to be in the projection and to assume the romantic.”. And the director to add, “Indeed, the actors are beautiful and sexy. We said to ourselves that we were not going to make a hyper realistic series close to the documentary. The idea was to say that it is possible and that they make us dream like characters younger. It’s really a direction that we wanted.”.
Beyond the love story of Rose and Jacques, Septième Ciel is also interested in desire and sexuality among the other characters in the series. Starting with Isabelle, Jacques’ daughter, who at 50 will question her relationship and fully live her desire. For Elsa, a blundering trainee in geriatrics, her stay at the residence will be an opportunity for her to learn more about sexuality and more particularly her own. Ultimately, it is a confrontation of the sexualities of several generations that is given to us to see and which sheds light on the subject of the series.
Proof if needed that love has no age.