Lacan via Lucas

"David Patrick Kelly as Jacques Lacan in ADIEU LACAN."

One of the first questions I had to ask myself when I was considering producing and directing my feature fiction film ADIEU LACAN was whether I could find an audience for the film. The story--based on the work of the Brazilian psychoanalyst Betty Milan--centers on a psychoanalysis conducted by the French psychoanalyst Jacques Lacan, one of the most important intellectual figures of the 20th century. The person who wants to do an analysis is Seriema, a Brazilian woman of Arab descent. She wants to know why her quest to become a mother has become an impossible one.

Thinking about finding an audience for the film, I remembered long ago hearing about a prop George Lucas always used when he was raising money for STAR WARS. It was a map of the United States with pins stuck in it. He would place it behind him when he spoke to his potential investors. Near the end of his presentation, he would point to it and explain that the pins marked the locations of science fiction clubs throughout the United States. If STAR WARS is a total bomb, he would reportedly tell his audience, and not a nice thing is written or said about it, these pins represent associations of people who still will go to see it no matter what. What is more, because these people can be reached through their science fiction clubs, they represent a minimal audience to which we can market STAR WARS.

"Ismenia Mendes as Seriema in ADIEU LACAN."

On a vastly more modest scale, I figured something similar could be true for ADIEU LACAN. I have spent years as a member of the Après-Coup Psychoanalytic Association in New York City. I know many of the members of the association and members of similar associations throughout the Americas and Europe to be in regular contact with each other. Many are avid users of the internet and social media. Additionally I know from personal experience that many are passionate about cinema.  

As fate would have it, our film emerged in 2020 as the pandemic was raging. Paradoxically, this may have worked in our favor. Psychoanalytic associations throughout the Americas and Europe were willing to host online screenings of the film followed by extended conferences during which we engaged in passionate discussions about the film. The enthusiasm of these clinical audiences was immensely gratifying for me personally. 

Now, as we finish V13, I look forward to going back to these associations as one of the initial core audiences for the film. Like ADIEU LACAN, V13 too is based on the writings of a Lacanian psychoanalyst analyzed by Jacques Lacan. This time the psychoanalyst portrayed in the film is not Jacques Lacan but Sigmund Freud, the inventor of psychoanalysis. He is played by Alan Cumming in a performance for the ages.