The Diving Bell and the Butterfly

Le Scaphandre et le Papillon (2007)

Timing: 1:52 (112 min)

7.57/10
1135

7.698/10
25426

8/10
113000

All about film

Video 1

Photo 6

Actors and characters

Release date

2007-05-23

Country

France, United States

Production

The Kennedy/Marshall Company, France 3 Cinéma, Pathé Renn Productions

Genre

Drama, History

Budget

$14 000 020

Revenue

$19 777 647

Website

Director

Julian Schnabel

Actors

Mathieu Amalric, Emmanuelle Seigner, Marie-Josée Croze, Anne Consigny, Patrick Chesnais, Niels Arestrup, Olatz López Garmendia, Jean-Pierre Cassel, Marina Hands, Max von Sydow
All actors and roles (10)

Scenario

Producer

Kathleen Kennedy, Jon Kilik, Léonard Glowinski, Pierre Grunstein, Jim Lemley

Operator

Janusz Kamiński

Composer

Paul Cantelon

Artist

Audition

Editing

Juliette Welfling
All team (18)

• The film's screenplay is based on the autobiographical book by Jean-Dominique Bauby.
• Julian Schnabel learned French in order to make this film.
• Initially, the script was written in English, and Johnny Depp was considered for the role of Jean-Dominique Bauby. However, he left the project due to filming Gore Verbinski's adventure film "Pirates of the Caribbean: At World's End" (2007). For some time, the filmmakers considered offering the lead role to Gary Oldman, but Julian Schnabel eventually managed to convince the heads of the Parisian studio "Pathe" to change the film's language from English to French and remain faithful to Bauby's autobiographical book.
• In 2006, the film's script was included in the "Black List" of top unproduced screenplays.
• Producer Steven Schneider included the film "The Diving Bell and the Butterfly" in his list of "100 Films to See Before You Die".
• To "get into the skin" of the main character, director Julian Schnabel filmed "The Diving Bell and the Butterfly" in the same hospital where Bauby was treated. He spoke with the orderlies who cared for the patient, and filmed some scenes on the balcony where Bauby was taken, and on the beach where his loved ones took him.
• For almost 40 minutes from the beginning of the film, the narrative is from the perspective of and through the eyes of the main character.
• In reality, Jean-Dominique Bauby had two children, not three. The filmmakers couldn't decide between two of the three remaining candidates after the selection process and ultimately took all three.
• In the film, Bauby is visited in the hospital by a friend named Russen (in the book his name is Jean-Paul K.). Bauby feels guilty towards him because he once gave Jean-Paul his plane ticket, resulting in him being taken hostage in Beirut (Lebanon). This man was actually held hostage in Beirut for some time, but not because Bauby gave him his ticket. In the book, Bauby apologizes for never contacting his friend after his release from captivity. Moreover, the book doesn't mention them ever meeting after the stroke Bauby suffered.
• After the film was completed, it became definitively known that Bauby's partner, not the mother of his children, was constantly at his side after his stroke. It’s impossible to say why the filmmakers decided to switch these women around. Regardless, it was his partner who helped him write the book, and it was in her arms that he died, while the mother of his children was in the United States with a friend.
• The main character watches a football match that took place on May 24, 1997, after he was already deceased. This is the famous Lyon vs. Marseille game (8-0), the final round of the 1996/97 French championship. The video shows the first minute of the match: at the moment the nurse turns off the television, the home team scores the first goal.
• Initially, the script was written in English, and Johnny Depp was considered for the role of Jean-Dominique Bauby, but he left the project due to filming in Gore Verbinski’s adventure film "Pirates of the Caribbean: At World's End" (2007). For some time, the filmmakers considered offering the lead role to Gary Oldman, but Julian Schnabel managed to convince the bosses of the Parisian studio "Pathe" to change the language of the film from English to French and not deviate from Bauby's autobiographical book.
• In 2006, the screenplay for the film ended up on the "Black List" of the best unproduced screenplays.
• Producer Steven Schneider included the film "The Diving Bell and the Butterfly" in his list of "100 Films to Watch Before You Die".
• To "get into the skin" of the main character, director Julian Schnabel filmed "The Diving Bell and the Butterfly" in the same hospital where Bauby was treated. He spoke with the orderlies who cared for the patient, and filmed some scenes on the balcony where Bauby was taken, and on the beach where his loved ones took him.