The Matriochkas on Channeling

What gap in the ecosystem were you hoping to bridge when you started Matriochkas?

Before joining forces in 2022, we both had realised that placing audio-visual rights was a field in need of structure and elevation. It demanded a broad and varied skillset; one we were able to build by combining our backgrounds in publishing and audio-visual production. Since then, we’ve been able to cover the full spectrum of work: from market-driven assessments and strategic outreach to producers, negotiating highly specialised contracts grounded in production business models, all guided by a genuine love of storytelling. Essentially, we are there at every step to ensure the author’s work is treated with care while helping it reach its fullest potential on screen.

By calling ourselves Matriochkas, after those small Russian dolls nested one inside the other, we aim to take part in this process of successive transformations, a process that will extend far beyond current formats.

What makes a literary work truly adaptable for screen?

The criteria for adaptability are varied and combine both objective and subjective elements:

• Feasibility (for example, a contained budget for a single-setting work)
• Strong dramatic stakes (for instance, driven by the time-lock structure of a thriller)
• The modernity of the themes
• Or the originality of the arena / the universe

There are also far more subjective criteria, such as the almost magical encounter between a director and a work that resonates with him or her on a deeply personal level.

How do you decide which themes or narratives have the potential to resonate across borders and languages?

When we think of stories such as Romeo and Juliet, we are reminded that certain narratives possess a universality and timeless quality that transcend cultural boundaries. We may not always know why, yet some themes (like love) are inherently enduring, while others, though contemporary, resonate just as strongly because they speak to the defining issues of our era.

How do you view the boom in the book-to-screen market?

DC: Streaming platforms have intensified IP competition and produced a certain convergence in development priorities. Within specific genres (dark romance, for example), market pressure means only one project is likely to move forward, overshadowing the others. Yet these same platforms have also paved the way for ambitious projects that might never have been made through traditional financing. In that sense, they have expanded the field of possibilities.

When it comes to the projects that platforms are looking for, many are deeply anchored in a specific territory. Who, for instance, is seeking a distinctly French erotic thriller or a lavish Indian Bollywood drama? Sometimes the setting itself is the selling point (take for instance Emily in Paris), while in other cases the subject matter is culturally inherent to its country (an example of this could be Tokyo Vice). Yet even these strongly local stories often carry themes that transcend borders: universal emotions, moral dilemmas, or questions that resonate widely. That’s the essence of the ‘glocal’ approach.

Another great example of what ‘glocal’ entails would be Squid Game. Its premise is rooted in issues specific to Korean society, yet it also tackles deeply contemporary, universal questions, such as how far individuals are willing to go for money in a hyper-competitive world.

Despite being a Paris-based bureau, how do you adapt for different nations and cultures?

MV: One way to gauge the audio-visual market for an adaptation is to look at where the book has found success. Depending on this, we may choose to develop a project across several territories. For instance, we sought partners for a Japanese project that had been translated worldwide, exploring European territories and the United States simultaneously. There was strong interest everywhere, but ultimately it was an American streamer that secured the project.

We are also very aware of contexts where co-production can naturally emerge from a project: for example, a book whose action takes place between two cultures, or a bicultural cast that can attract production companies capable of working across borders, which in turn makes it possible to combine multiple sources of financing.

How open are publishers today to thinking of books as audio-visual properties from the start?

MV: Publishers, for the most part, continue to focus on the book in its material form, with adaptations remaining at the tail end of the commercial process.

DC: By contrast, some authors have fully embraced audio-visual codes. There is, among other things, a permeability between serialised screenwriting and serialised literature. Authors are also viewers, and it happens that their writing can be shaped, sometimes unconsciously, by their own viewing habits and the way audio-visual codes evolve. On the non-fiction side, some investigative journalists work with the audio-visual project in mind from the outset, the book serving as a springboard towards the audio-visual format.

Can you share an example of a book-to-screen project that particularly inspired you?

MV: I find the trajectory of a novel like Margaret Atwood’s The Handmaid’s Tale particularly inspiring. The author already had a strong reputation, yet it had been lying in the backlist of her publishers when the series sent sales soaring.

DC: Presumed Innocent, Scott Turow’s novel, gave rise to a film adaptation by Alan J. Pakula starring Harrison Ford in 1990, a completely iconic work in its own right. Last year, the story was fully reimagined as an eight-episode series for Apple TV+ with Jake Gyllenhaal, even daring to change the ending. It shows how some stories never grow old, how a remarkably effective concept can transcend time, even forty years later.

Adaptation often brings up the question of fidelity? How do you navigate this balance?

DC: France is the country of moral rights, the right for an author to have his or her work respected as intended. At the same time, an adaptation is, by definition, a new creation: a new author draws on a novel or pre-existing literary work to transform it into something different, going from page to screen. They also need the freedom to leave their own mark.

MV: As a viewer, the most stimulating adaptations have been complete reinventions. How could one not applaud the baroque western that is Brokeback Mountain, even though it was inspired by Annie Proulx’s razor-sharp short story?

Do you see the future of adaptation expanding beyond traditional screens?

Adaptation formats will always reflect the evolving ways audiences consume visual content. The format adapts to the target audience. For younger viewers, short-form programmes that can be watched on a phone in just a few minutes are emerging.

What keeps you motivated?

To us, no story is ever too old. We’re drawn to forgotten backlist novels and enduring long-sellers that continue to resonate with readers. Good stories also transcend borders: Pride and Prejudice has travelled across time and cultures, inspiring works like Bride and Prejudice, where its themes remain just as compelling. At Matriochkas, we strive to help French, American and why not Indian stories travel in new forms and be adapted for wider audiences. In our opinion, stories from anywhere in the world can give rise to adaptations that resonate internationally.

Matriochkas is dedicated to initiating and supporting book-to-screen adaptations of literary works, founded in January 2022 by Maÿlis Vauterin and Delphine Clot. Among the forty or so option & purchase agreements, they have successfully negotiated, they have placed the film rights of the following novels Diary of A Void by Emi Yagi, I Who Have Never Known Men by Jacqueline Harpman, and Lakestone by Sarah Rivens. Their first adaptations released include Dear You by Emily Blaine on Prime Video.