After capturing a demure Clémence Poésy for part one of our Lettres Grandes trilogy, a series of evocative readings of historical letters, the erudite project returns with actor Alice de Lencquesaing. Having been nominated for the coveted César Award for Most Promising Actress (previous honorees include Charlotte Gainsbourg and Julie Delpy), here De Lencquesaing reads an impassioned letter penned by the lionized French poet Guillaume Apollinaire.

Written to Louise de Coligny-Châtillon with whom he began an affair after they met in Nîmes in 1914, just days before Apollinaire enlisted in the French army, the letter is recognized as an inspiration for much of 20th-century romantic literature. 

“Alice’s face and her grace leads us to believe that it could come from another era,” says director and Lettres Grandes creator Elsa Klughertz. “This is why getting a letter from the turn of the century and written by one of the greatest French poets is a perfect combination. This illusion echoes the universal nature of an intimate letter.”