At just 30 years old, Raphaël Quenard has already filmed for Quentin Dupieux, Michel Hazanavicius, Jacques Audiard, Cédric Jimenez or Jeanne Herry, and he is expected in no less than four films and a series this year.
Spotted in the HP
series
in 2018 where he played an intern in a psychiatric hospital, he chained roles and genres, notably standing out as the villain in
Family Business
, the series by Igor Gotesman worn by Jonathan Cohen on Netflix, or in the uniform of a soldier in
Third War,
facing Leïla Bekhti and Anthony Bajon.
It is also the latter that Raphaël Quenard finds in the cinema for his first big role in
Chien de la casse
, the first film by Jean-Baptiste Durand.
In video, the trailer of
Dog of the case
(2023)
The story is that of Dog (Anthony Bajon) and Mirales (Raphaël Quenard), two inseparable childhood friends who spend their day hanging out in a small village in the south of France.
The balance of the tandem is suddenly undermined by the arrival of a young girl (Galatea Bellugi) in the village.
“Mirales, my character, is someone I know intimately.
He tells me about me, my childhood friends, from college.
When I heard about this film project, I was so eager to land this role that I harassed the director by email.
I think I wrote him 600 in one month!”, admits the actor.
He adds: “Jean-Baptiste Durand is a great filmmaker because he seeks poetry in the banality of a life with great simplicity.
The film tells of a provincial youth,
Anthony Bajon, Galatea Bellugi and Raphaël Quenard in
Chien de la casse
.
Camille Sonally
Show policy
Born in Gières near Grenoble, Raphaël Quenard grew up surrounded by his three-year-old brother and his 21-year-old little sister, "the best people on Earth and those to whom I am closest", he says. .
His mother works for an insurance company and his father, now retired, in a building science and technology centre.
“My parents are exceptional because they passed on to us the value of hard work, the importance of working hard.”
With a master's degree in chemistry in his pocket, Raphaël started out as a research assistant but quickly turned to politics.
“I really had a childish look at this universe and I saw politicians as actors rather than people who were supposed to direct our lives.
I wanted to put on a show in front of an audience and I thought that politics would satisfy that desire, but I realized that the show was really a tiny part of the job.
This taste for the spectacle, the young man cultivates it since his childhood, in particular through his passion for football: “I played on a field for 16 years and I loved taking cards to feel the excitement of the public.
It is this same stimulating atmosphere that I seek today in the cinema.
loved taking boxes to feel the excitement of the public.
It is this same stimulating atmosphere that I seek today in the cinema.
loved taking boxes to feel the excitement of the public.
It is this same stimulating atmosphere that I seek today in the cinema.
A taste for words
After saying goodbye to politics, Raphaël Quenard moved to Paris where he discovered the
1000 faces
association founded by the director of
Divines
, Houda Benyamina, which promotes the integration of young people from priority neighborhoods, suburbs and rural areas. , in the world of cinema.
He connects “a little underground” short films that he does not encourage anyone to watch, he says.
His talent made him cross paths with various casting directors, directors, but also producers like Hugo Sélignac (
Bac Nord, Novembre, Le Grand Bain, Pupille
…) with whom he shares his love for the singer Jul and who encourages him to change agents.
The turn taken, the young actor quickly stands out in comic roles or in the skin of smooth talkers as in
Fragile
by Emma Benestan or
Chien de la casse
.
“I have always been fascinated by class defectors and the best instrument of equality in my opinion remains eloquence.
It is one of the only things that can be found in all social circles.
I love this quote from René Char: "The words that will arise know things about us that we don't know about them."
“And because he himself is a young author, he is currently writing” a romantic comedy of a new genre “, but also a novel which he qualifies as a “truthful-murderous comedy” for which he is looking for a publisher… Beyond the language, Raphaël is a relentless worker: “Too often we tell dazzling success stories when a dazzling success inevitably turns out to be a sham if there is no work behind it.
I
I recently saw a documentary on Orson Welles that fascinates me and when I see what he has accomplished, I am blown away by his genius.
In addition to the actor
Citizen Kane
, the young actor says he is inspired by Michael Shannon, Steve Buscemi, Woody Harrelson, Matthew McConaughey, but also Depardieu, Belmondo, Gabin, Ventura, Paul Préboist, Serge Regiani or Yves Montant.
(False) problems of the rich
Faithful to the hyperactivity of some of his masters, Raphaël Quenard continues to shoot one after the other and the public will find him at the beginning of July on Netflix in a scam film by Jérémie Rozan, then in Yannick by Quentin Dupieux with Pio Marmaï
and
Blanche Gardin,
why are you smiling?
opposite Emmanuelle Devos and Jean-Pascal Zadi, but also in an Arte series by Laetitia Masson.
He also reunited with Jonathan Cohen for the needs of
Sentinel
, a comedy by Hugo Benamozig and David Caviglioli.
An offbeat genre that suits this laughing youngster, always ready to joke.
“When I was little, we spent evenings with my friends telling each other about the problems of being rich that we didn't have.
One told how his yacht had been lost in the Dubai Marina, the other told us about the problem of his horses, or even his multinational company which was floundering... And we ended up leaving each other without saying an ounce of truth”.
Happy memories for the enthusiastic thirty-year-old, who is about to join Gilles Lellouche's set for his second film
L'amour ouf,
where he plays François Civil's little brother.
Raphaël Quenard promises to continue his wonderful ascent.