Mélissa Désormeaux-Poulin only had 48 hours to breathe between filming the second season of the series Secret secret And Black Lakelast spring.
She therefore had to move from her interpretation of the director of the Canadian Security Service (SSC), Rachel Miller, a woman who carries national security on her shoulders, to the clothing of police officer Valérie Roberge, who also had a difficult time. Not since his son Dave (Anthony Therrien) became a…werewolf.
However, for the 42-year-old actress, acting in “Classé Secret” is more physically and mentally demanding.
Actress Mélissa Désormeaux-Poulin with her playmate Stéphane Demers in a scene from “Lac-Noir 2”. PHOTO PROVIDED BY CLUB ILLICO
“When I continued with Lac-Noir two days after finishing Classified Secret, I had to quickly sign off on Rachel, who is practically a robot. Rachel is disconnected, barely moves, and has no emotions. She doesn’t smile, doesn’t really blink and stands very straight. I even had to work a lot on my body to move my voice. I realized how much I have changed for Rachel and that Valérie has become more like me,” said Mélissa Désormeaux-Poulin in an interview with QMI Agency.
The two productions hit our screens in quick succession, bringing Mélissa Désormeaux-Poulin to the fore as she – already – enters her 35th year as an actress in front of the camera. Classé Secret 2 premieres at ADDIK on Wednesday October 18th at 9pm, while Lac-Noir 2 arrives at Club illico on Thursday October 26th.
Intensity in preparation
The workaholic Mélissa Désormeaux-Poulin analyzes each scene before filming begins.
In the case of Classé Secret, in this second season she had to learn and deliver 400 scenes marked by the rise of her character, who is still struggling with the aftermath of the death of her partner Émile Darcy (Patrick Labbé). , which took place 18 months earlier.
Will Rachel Miller’s (Mélissa Désormeaux-Poulin) heart fall for Professor Fabien Duverney (Sébastien Huberdeau), who teaches at the private college her daughters attend? PHOTO BY ERIC MYRE, PROVIDED BY ADDIK
“My preparation is very intensive. I always wonder what the purpose of each scene is. I work in my head 24 hours a day when I have a new shoot because it gets me excited! I find my balance in imbalance. It’s very intense when I’m taking photos and then it’s quieter, but I’m so happy. I don’t take things lightly and I’m well prepared.”
In the case of Valérie in Lac-Noir, it is the plot that drives the story, while in Classé Secret it is undeniably Rachel who allows the intrigue to move forward, since as the novel’s boss she is at the center of the negotiations secret services.
At the beginning of the second season, Rachel and her team have their hands full with the French mercenary Robin Denard (Laurent Lucas), who comes to Montreal with hidden agendas, but also with the kidnapping of two engineers from Quebec (Maxime De Cotret and Ted Pluviose ) is commissioned ) in the Maghreb. Additionally, Rachel must contend with her mother-in-law, Maggie (France Castel), who has moved into her home to help her, and who is trying to figure out how and why her son Émile died.
The actresses Geneviève Boivin-Roussy, Mélissa Désormeaux-Poulin and France Castel. PHOTO BY ERIC MYRE, PROVIDED BY ADDIK
“Rachel always plays on two sides, we don’t know if it’s true or false, so I always have to doubt my game,” said her interpreter, not hiding that the secret agent “doesn’t trust anyone anymore” Given the fact that her Ex was a mole in the pay of the Americans. She will try to find out who in the team shot Émile in the series written by François Pagé, directed by Stéphan Beaudoin and produced by Duo Productions.
“It will never be possible for Rachel to return to a normal life. We will see her downfall and she will make bad decisions. Plus, there’s someone who will have fun taking everything she loves away from her. She will lose control, let her emotions get the best of her, and put the people she loves in danger.”
Valérie tries to maintain dialogue with her son
In the sequel to Lac-Noir, Valérie, who has never felt more in danger than now, sees her son move away and Dave now a werewolf. The policewoman finds out about the lie about the werewolf pack and investigates new wolf attacks with her colleague Adrien (Stéphane Demers). In addition, the series directed by Frédérik D’Amours and produced by Pixcom takes on a whole political dimension with the arrival of the werewolf Senate.
Actress Mélissa Désormeaux-Poulin surrounded by actors Andreas Apergis and Stéphane Demers in a scene from “Lac-Noir 2”. PHOTO BY BERNARD BRAULT, PROVIDED BY CLUB ILLICO
“Valérie, I have to be physically fit because I hunt wolves. And since we are in a completely fantastic universe, my job is to believe in it and that I am anchored in reality,” said Mélissa Désormeaux-Poulin.
This fall, the actress is traveling extensively around the country filming commercials for Kia, and she’s taking time with loved ones and for herself (she’s recently started practicing yoga intensively and talks about a “new bubble”).
longevity
Mélissa Désormeaux-Poulin is passionate about the profession she has chosen since childhood, when she starred in the television series Jamais deux sans toi.
In fact, everything she does or loves is part of longevity. Both her career and her romantic relationship with the father of her children, Jonathan, with whom she has shared her life for 26 years.
“That’s how I am in life, my business is long-term focused. My relationships, my friends, my boyfriend, that’s what I look like. If I love something, I won’t give it up, for example my job. It’s a strange relationship I have with the game. Sometimes I want more, sometimes less, but it fulfills me, that’s what excites me the most. My passion is my job, so I couldn’t be happier. My fear is that it will stop. That is exactly the problem.”
Would she like to do something else, like direct or write? “I recently saw an interview with Anne Dorval who said that all she wanted to do was play. I’m in the same place as her. I like being in control, I like being in a gang, but I don’t think I could be a good director. It’s really the acting that drives me crazy. I am 42 years old and as an actress I still have a lot of wishes and fantasies to realize. I was made to play!”
A new “secret” project for the actress
Mélissa Désormeaux-Poulin is re-energized because in January she will film a new project that was on her wish list as an actress.
*NO RESALE* // EMBARGO: WEDNESDAY, OCTOBER 18, 3 PM // Actress Mélissa Désormeaux-Poulin is back in the spy series “Classé Secret”. In the second season, which begins on Wednesday, October 18, 2023, at 9 p.m. on ADDIK, her character Rachel Miller is now the director of the Canadian Security Service. PHOTO OF ERIC MYRE, PROVIDED BY ADDIK PHOTO OF ERIC MYRE, PROVIDED BY ADDIK
“I’m not allowed to talk about it, but it’s on my wish list. It’s something I’ve dreamed of for a long time, so I’m very happy. “Shooting will begin in January,” the veteran actress said simply.
If you see her watching people or taking notes, it’s probably because she’s cultivating her new personality and game.
“With this new role and the fact that I’m not filming at the moment, I have time to people watch, which I love! I get inspired by the people around me, I look at how people live, I watch series. Then there’s a lot of table work with the texts to understand what happens before, what happens in each scene, etc.”