{"id":14429,"date":"2026-02-16T09:49:34","date_gmt":"2026-02-16T09:49:34","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.sbcine.be\/?p=14429"},"modified":"2026-02-16T09:49:34","modified_gmt":"2026-02-16T09:49:34","slug":"framing-faith-virginie-saint-martin-on-lensing-mother","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.sbcine.be\/?p=14429","title":{"rendered":"Framing faith:\u00a0Virginie Saint-Martin\u00a0on lensing\u00a0Mother\u00a0"},"content":{"rendered":"\n

Directed by\u00a0Teona Strugar\u00a0Mitevska,\u00a0Mother<\/em>\u00a0is a fictional account of seven days in Mother Teresa\u2019s life leading to her decision to leave her convent in Kolkata and establish her own religious order.\u00a0The film sees DOP\u00a0Virginie Saint-Martin\u00a0SBC reunite with\u00a0Mitevska,\u00a0having previously collaborated on\u00a0I Am from Titov Veles<\/em>\u00a0(2007),\u00a0God<\/em>\u00a0Exists, Her Name Is\u00a0Petrunya<\/em>\u00a0(2019)\u00a0and\u00a0The Happiest Man in the World<\/em>\u00a0(2022).<\/p>\n\n\n\n

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\u00a0\u201cTeona and I are used to working together,\u201d begins Saint-Martin.\u00a0\u201cThis project was very low budget.\u00a0We cast Noomi Rapace as the lead, and after salaries the budget became even tighter.\u00a0Teona and I always do lots of work and prep together\u00a0when we begin a project and\u00a0before we shoot.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n

For Saint-Martin, it\u2019s about finding the visual language. \u201cIt\u2019s also about figuring out how we will shoot it,\u201d she says. \u201cTeona changes her approach with every film and this was no different. She\u2019s always questioning cinema and what cinema means.\u201d <\/p>\n\n\n\n

Saint-Martin\u2019s and Mitevska\u2019s initial conversations about the look of Mother<\/em> revolved around framing Mother Teresa (portrayed by Noomi Rapace). \u201cAt the beginning, Teona wanted a square format,\u201d adds Saint-Martin. \u201cThe French distributor didn\u2019t allow for that as they argued they wouldn\u2019t be able to sell it. So, we tried 1.66:1 aspect ratio before ultimately settling on 1.85:1.\u201d <\/p>\n\n\n\n

Saint-Martin admits that this was challenging due to allowing for space in the frame above Mother Teresa. \u201cWhen you are not in the square frame, then it\u2019s very strange,\u201d she says. \u201cWe tried to find a way around it, but Teona desired that look. I know her process very well and understand how she works.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Saint-Martin explains that together with Mitevska they develop a visual language and build from there together. \u201cWe are always building and there\u2019s always trust. Teona and I both bring something and it\u2019s always back and forth between us. We know each other very well.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n

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Despite this, Saint-Martin admits that working with a well-known actress as the lead was somewhat stressful for Mitevska. \u201cIt\u2019s very different from our previous work together where we worked with people from Macedonia. That was a lot easier for her,\u201d she admits. \u201cNoomi was completely involved, but she only took two takes whenever we started shooting. She really gave everything, but it\u2019s hard to play with that and I\u2019m not sure Teona was so relaxed working in that way.\u201d <\/p>\n\n\n\n

Saint-Martin acknowledges that you have to be very involved as a cinematographer and was impressed with Rapace\u2019s work ethic. \u201cI\u2019m always on Teona\u2019s side and I understand her pressure,\u201d she says. \u201cI was very impressed by the way that Noomi acts. It\u2019s very interesting. There was a lot of handheld camera work. We really danced together and she trusted me a lot.\u201d <\/p>\n\n\n\n

Saint-Martin admits that she is usually someone who is very quiet on the set. \u201cI have the mindset of working quietly and staying focused,\u201d she says. \u201cNoomi and I both respect each other and our way of working and I said to Teona to use her trust that she has in me. I didn\u2019t feel any pressure at all. It\u2019s also quite easy to have the light on Noomi, she\u2019s very beautiful. It was very interesting to light and her frame her. I was really in love with this actress.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n

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All of the interior scenes were shot in Belgium, while the exteriors were captured in Kolkata in India. \u201cWe found the old monastery in Belgium and that was completely empty. The new owner said we could do what we want. Teona\u2019s brother, Vuk Mitevskiwas the set decorator. It was very interesting because we played with the light, colour and brightness and we always made these tests together.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Saint-Martin\u2019s gaffer on the film was Vincent Piette. The two have known each other and been friends since they were twelve. \u201cWe pre-lit all the set,\u201d explains Saint-Martin. \u201cI told production the light budget would be expensive, but it meant we could shoot everywhere. That was very interesting because we set up like a studio.\u201d <\/p>\n\n\n\n

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Saint-Martin relied on a range of LED sources, including Lightstar Luxed, AputureFresnels and Nanlux. \u201cNanlux wasn\u2019t enough by itself as it wasn\u2019t interesting for me,\u201d she notes. \u201cI started off as an electrician and I really like Fresnels, which we mixed with 6K and the Luxed. We put LED panels everywhere that we could. It\u2019s not a lot though. It\u2019s interesting for me to put the light outside because it\u2019s a handheld movie and I had to follow Noomi.\u201d <\/p>\n\n\n\n

Although the budget allowed for the lighting fixtures that Saint-Martin desired, she explains that it was still challenging to light. \u201cI could be very free with my camera movement and during one scene, Teona hid in the corner of the room where we shot with a monitor. She was actually in the frame a few times. You always felt that it\u2019s a master shot during the edit. It\u2019s always work in progress, but in the sense that means something.\u201d <\/p>\n\n\n\n

Rapace was always able to move freely and embrace the space. \u201cTeona did direct her, of course but Noomi did what she wanted,\u201d laughs Saint-Martin. \u201cShe was always informed by her character and did whatever she thought Mother Teresa would do. As it was handheld I could easily follow her and that\u2019s why I chose to shoot the film with the Sony Burano.\u201d <\/p>\n\n\n\n

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Saint-Martin opted for the Sony Burano due to its compactness and being more lightweight than the Venice and the Alexa. \u201cMy focus puller wasn\u2019t really happy with that, but it\u2019s an easy camera really. It\u2019s perfect for this kind of film. That was accompanied with 15mm Leitz SUMMICRON-C, Fujinon Cabrio 19-90mm, and Lensbabylenses. I ended up using more of my budget on lights than camera.\u201d <\/p>\n\n\n\n

Saint-Martin explains that the film isn\u2019t intended to be a biopic and follows Mother Teresa over the course of one week. \u201cShe was born in Macedonia and Teona is also from Macedonia. Mother Teresa was in a traditional covenant and then she decided to make her way to help fight poverty. In France, they called the movie Teresa and so people thought it was a biopic, but it isn\u2019t really that at all. It\u2019s a misleading title actually. It\u2019s about what she\u2019s waiting for and there are thriller elements and ultimately, it\u2019s about faith.\u201d <\/p>\n\n\n\n

The two had also previously collaborated on a documentary about Mother Teresa<\/em> and during that project they visit everywhere that Mother Teresa had built. \u201cWe had that as an initial reference, but with Teona the references are always about paintings,\u201d says Saint-Martin. \u201cWe saw lots of religious painting from the 15th<\/sup> century. You don\u2019t really see direct references in the movie, but it\u2019s always about texture. Teona worked in graphics before, so everything has to be checked on the set.\u201d <\/p>\n\n\n\n

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The overall shoot lasted 30 days, with 20 days in Belgium and 10 in Kolkata. \u201cIt\u2019s really a collaboration between make-up, costume and set design and we made lots of tests and did lots of research. As a DOP, it\u2019s very interesting and any movie like this will be a pleasure for me to work on. I need to fight to be able to make these kinds of tests, even with the director.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\u201cI\u2019m very proud of this movie because we worked hard between Belgium and Kolkata. It was really rough,\u201d concludes Saint-Martin. \u201cI really enjoyed the Belgian part and meeting Noomi. It was very emotional. Your work will always be better with that level of acting. Noomi is very high level and very involved and focused. I don’t like a set where everybody’s talking.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n

By Oliver Webb\u00a0<\/p>\n\n\n\n

<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

Directed by\u00a0Teona Strugar\u00a0Mitevska,\u00a0Mother\u00a0is a fictional account of seven days in Mother Teresa\u2019s life leading to her decision to leave her convent in Kolkata and establish…<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":90,"featured_media":14433,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"rs_blank_template":"","rs_page_bg_color":"","slide_template_v7":"","footnotes":""},"categories":[42],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-14429","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-productions"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.sbcine.be\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/14429","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.sbcine.be\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.sbcine.be\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.sbcine.be\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/users\/90"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.sbcine.be\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fcomments&post=14429"}],"version-history":[{"count":5,"href":"https:\/\/www.sbcine.be\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/14429\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":14462,"href":"https:\/\/www.sbcine.be\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/14429\/revisions\/14462"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.sbcine.be\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/media\/14433"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.sbcine.be\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fmedia&parent=14429"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.sbcine.be\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fcategories&post=14429"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.sbcine.be\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Ftags&post=14429"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}