Le Figaro. How does it feel to see yourself on the big screen?
Ugo Mola:
It's not really our world so we're a bit torn.
Between this total immersion in our daily life that we offer and not too comfortable with what it can represent in terms of exposure.
It's an ambivalent feeling between pride in what we experienced last season and a little embarrassment that it's coming out now, given our current results.
So we try to do the promotion with a bit of modesty at the same time.
To discover
Schedule and Top 14 results
Ranking Top 14
Does this outing put pressure on you sportingly?
It won't take away what we've won.
This movie is about what happened, not what's going to happen.
But it will always give our opponents something to grind on… This is the lot of any immersion.
After the pandemic, we felt it was necessary to open up to share things with our audience.
We're pretty proud of that.
The consequences or the collateral damage, we will see later…
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Did you have a say in the passages chosen and shown?
Honestly, there has been very little censorship, proofreading.
We totally trusted Eric (Hannezo) and Matthieu (Vollaire) (the co-directors, editor's note), who chose a particular axis.
It's neither my background nor my job.
I would have been very uncomfortable giving any advice.
Well, on the flowery language, we see that I am not stingy (
laughs
).
If they removed a pair of punctuations from the South of France, it doesn't change much...
“We do not claim to hold the monopoly of the truth, the heart or the values.
But we are trying out a new format in an environment which, to my taste, is sometimes a little too sanitized.
»
Ugo Mola
What image of Stade Toulousain will this film convey to the general public?
I've no idea !
The only thing I can say is that it was done without calculation or ulterior motive.
I hope that this film will show our sincerity, our mode of operation.
Then everyone will have their own opinion.
From the moment we agreed to open, we knew that intimacy would inevitably be disrupted.
It is certain that there are very important moments, especially around the briefs, that you would like to keep to yourself.
But, when you share, you have to go to the end of the process… Above all, I would like people to perceive the players' love for the Stade Toulousain jersey.
Can this subject attract people to cinemas?
Rugby needs exposure.
We see it with the good results of the France team.
It can compensate for the lack of credibility that our championship can sometimes have between duplicates and reports… This exhibition has the merit of being sincere, of allowing people to access our environment.
We do not pretend to hold the monopoly of the truth, the heart or the values.
But we are trying out a new format in an environment which, to my taste, is sometimes a little too sanitized.
I have a rather high sense of modesty, which is under strain at the moment, but I think it's a good thing for our sport.
Have you managed to forget the camera that is constantly watching you?
The first few weeks, you pay attention to it.
Then, after two months, the natural takes over.
It was an incredible season, in a very particular context (
the pandemic, matches behind closed doors, editor's note
).
What transpires is a lot of tension, anxiety.
But the delivery of victory allows us not to be too uncomfortable when presenting this documentary.
You continue to be filmed…
Yes.
And, I'm not hiding it from you, I hope it will be a little less centered on me and more on other players who have an even greater share than me in the successes of Stade Toulousain.
After this experience, will you be tempted by a retraining as an actor?
No, no, no… I will not expose myself in this kind of environment.