The French rock band will tour this summer with their new album Labyrinthe, appearing at the Nîmes Arena on June 14, followed by Marseille’s Dôme on December 10, 2026. Less known is Feu ! Chatterton’s film music composition. The Music & Cinema Marseille festival will showcase Élise sous emprise by Marie Rémoud on Tuesday, March 31 at 9 pm, with Feu ! Chatterton contributing to the soundtrack. Following the screening, the director will discuss with band members Sébastien Wolf and Clément Doumic. Interview.
We know little about your film music composition activity. When did this start?
Sébastien Wolf: We have always been interested in cinema and started composing music for films or series about six to seven years ago. Film music is a consistent part of our work, providing us with great creative freedom. We have composed for a musical comedy (La grande magie by Noémie Lvovsky), a thriller, and a series set in the 1980s (Toutouyoutou).
Clément Doumic: With Sébastien, we are fans of Radiohead, which includes film music composer and guitarist Jonny Greenwood. Radiohead has been a model of creation for us. We have admired the exciting projects of the band members, such as the soundtrack for There Will Be Blood by Paul Thomas Anderson.
What are your iconic soundtracks?
S.W.: The music from There Will Be Blood, the series Twin Peaks, and more classical music, of course. I am a fan of John Williams. It’s a cliché to say, but he is a great composer in terms of melodies and arrangements.
You are presenting “Élise sous emprise” by Marie Rémoud at the Music & Cinema festival. What motivated you for this project? The script? Marie Rémoud’s personality?
C.D.: A bit of both. We had written the music for a play, Le Chapeau de Paille d’Italie, directed by Alain Françon. Marie Rémoud was in that play, and that’s how we met her. She shared her screenplay with us, which really moved us. It’s the story of a young female director under the influence of an older director.
Did you compose the music after editing, with the images in front of you, or before?
S.W.: We wrote most of the music before editing. We made mistakes, we admit that. Initially, we offered quite dark music, as the film has scenes of panic. Marie challenged all of that during editing and managed to convince us. We re-wrote almost everything. The music is much lighter now, we even changed the instruments initially starting with dark synths, we switched to acoustic instruments, dry guitar, drums.
Are you happy, as an established band, to support a debut film?
S.W.: Yes, of course! Marie knew what she wanted. It’s about personality and relationship with music. We have sometimes worked with established directors who had a more naive approach to music.
Your summer tour will include a stop at the Nîmes Arena on June 14. Does this historically significant venue inspire you?
C.D.: Yes, this is where I attended my very first concert. I used to talk about Radiohead all the time. I was 14 years old, it was my first outing with friends outside of Paris. A great memory.
