CULTURE
ANTONIA DESPLAT IN APPLE TV’S SHANTARAM
NOVEMBER 21, 2022
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INTERVIEW
by NOAH LOIACONO
STYLING
by PIA AUNG
@piaaungstylist
PHOTOS
COURTESY of MATT EASTON
Triple-threat Antonia Desplat has been acting since she was 9 years old, first appearing in French Cable show, Jeff et Leo, Flics et Jumeaux. Since then, she has won four awards for Held for a Moment, a film she co-wrote, co-produced, and starred in. Currently, she is starring in Apple TV's Shantaram, an acclaimed prison-escape show set in Bombay, India.
We sat down with Antonia to talk about her Academy Award-winning composer father, her role in Shantaram, and her experience as a writer, producer, and actor.
Yellow suit blazer and trouser: Stella McCartney | Earrings: Lylie Jewellery
You grew up in an artistic family.
My parents are musicians. My mom’s a violinist, my father’s a flautist-turned-composer, and my sister is in music production.
Do you think that being in a creative family led you towards a career in the arts?
Definitely. I was classically trained from an early age in music theory, ballet, singing, guitar, and I was introduced to the discipline, repetition, and practice needed when embarking on any type of art.
I was a hyperactive, very loud child. I was filled with energy and creative desire to constantly perform. I was a bit of a nightmare! My parents would be having dinner and I’d be on the table performing—it’s my time, look at me! They got me into acting when I was nine. My parents were desperately thrilled to know that I could put my energy into something that would maybe give me a job one day.
Did you ever feel intimidated by your parents’ legacy?
I ran away from it. I’m very proud of my dad, but he struggled to get where he got, and I wouldn’t want to have a shortcut. I was struggling. I was writing and producing my own things in order to keep busy and to keep creating. For me, it’s more about telling stories, whether those stories on the side of the street or in a huge cinema.
Now you’re in Shantaram and I heard that you read the novel seven times.
I love Shantaram and I did indeed read the novel seven times.
