“Miss,” one of them said in a thick French accent. “Come with us.”
Crap.They’d found out I wasn’t Carly Wolf’s assistant.
“I should have been on the list,” I said.
He grabbed on to my arm. “Please follow us.”
“You’re hurting me,” I said, trying to wiggle free. “I’m in the movie!”
“Miss, please.”
There had to be a gracious way out of this. There definitely, probably, was a gracious way out of this. But right then, in my champagne daze, it whizzed by and disappeared into the starry night.
So there I was, gawked at by dozens of fancy movie people (mypeople), manhandled away from the party, down the stairs, and out onto the street, where I stood for a few minutes. My first day in Cannes had been a little underwhelming, but it would be all uphill from here. I’d spent every last penny I had coming here. This movie meant everything to me. Now was not the time to wonder if I should have listened to Liza and stayed home. And it was definitely not the time to ask myself whyeverything felt off.
But it should have been.
It really should have been.
Cannes Film FestivalDay Thirteen
(The Day After)
Interview of Lou Ocean Utley
Actor
Conducted by Officer Truchaud of the Criminal Brigade
Also present: Amina Dembele, translator
Officer Truchaud:Would you say you made enemies from that very first night? Some people have reported you were very angry.
Lou Ocean Utley:What people?
Officer Truchaud:Iask the questions.
Lou Ocean Utley:I wasn’t angry. I know we’ve just met, but I’m a really nice person. People like me. I don’tgetangry. It’s not my thing. Unless I have to act angry, then it’sdefinitelymy thing. I work hard on my craft.
Officer Truchaud:There were multiple reports that you were screaming at a producer named Marshall Wild. Is that correct?
Lou Ocean Utley:Oh that. Such a funny story. Would you like to hear it?
Officer Truchaud:That’s why I asked.
Lou Ocean Utley:It’s hilarious, really. I was in character. My character from… You know what, the details are a little complicated. I apologized to him later, you know. Did he tell you that?
Officer Truchaud:You just asked another question.
Lou Ocean Utley:Well, I did apologize. It’s all water under the bridge now.
Officer Truchaud:That’s an interesting choice of word, considering we found a body in the water yesterday afternoon.
Lou Ocean Utley:Such a tragedy. I didn’t mean any disrespect. But it’s not a crime to attend a party you weren’t technically invited to. You know who the real criminals are? The movie studios who cut budgets down to nothing and don’t care about the art we’re trying to make.
Officer Truchaud:That’s not the kind of criminal I’m looking for. It seems like you’ve been drawing attention to yourself all along this festival.
Lou Ocean Utley:I’m an actor. If I’m not drawing attention to myself, what am I even doing? That’s what we want: attention.
