Here it all begins: “For Lisandro, everything will be resolved by a suicidal act” says Agustin Galiana

AlloCiné: Since the beginning of Here it all begins, Lisandro was present in a rather episodic way, because you were shooting season 11 of Clem in parallel. But in recent weeks, your character has finally been at the center of a great plot, which notably involves Rose and Elodie. Did you know from the start that an ark dedicated to Lisandro would arrive after a few months?

Agustin Galiana : Yes, I knew that the authors were writing this arch that we shot in November. When I received the texts, I was a little afraid because it gave me a lot of sequences to learn, and at the same time I was obviously delighted because it was a real challenge to shoot all this in a month and a half . And, beyond the technical aspect, I find it to be a very beautiful plot, full of twists and turns. Vanessa Demouy and I were delighted to be at the center of this arch.

We learn a little more about Lisandro and his life over the episodes. We discover in particular his relationship with his son, whom he has seen little in recent years and with whom he has difficulty creating a real bond. In your opinion, is it this injury, this painful estrangement from Esteban that characterizes Lisandro more than anything?

Yes, this is Lisandro’s flaw. He could not flourish as a dad because of his difficult relationship with Gaëlle (Julie Dommanget), his ex-wife. And that’s what keeps him from creating the natural bond he should have forged with Esteban. In these episodes, we finally see the fragility of my character. As soon as you touch his son, or pull him away from him, he goes crazy. He’s afraid of losing it, and that’s why he’s got all this rage in him

Lisandro is wrongly accused by Elodie of having hit her in the face. And Lisandro will end up asking questions and wondering if Gaëlle, his ex-wife, could not be behind it all. What can you say about how this plot will evolve?

I find that the interesting point of this plot is that we are going to find out who Lisandro really is. Because Elodie (Sarah-Cheyenne) pushes him to the limit. It puts him in a very complicated situation. He thinks he’s going to lose everything. And, a priori, the only way for him to get out would be for Rose to serve as an alibi and confess that she was with him in the greenhouse at the time of Elodie’s alleged assault. But will this revelation really save Lisandro? This is the challenge of the next episodes. And it may well be that this whole thing ends in another way, with a more impulsive act. But I can’t say more.

Were you surprised by this connection between Rose and your character?

Completely. I was not expecting it at all. And I think viewers didn’t see it coming either. That’s the strong point of this plot: how these two characters came together at one point because of the similarities between what they were going through. They were both in a very fragile time, and suddenly they found the support they needed in each other, a little unexpectedly. They are a bit like two injured animals, who manage to heal their wounds when in contact with each other. And then these are two characters who are charming, endearing, and beautiful (laughs). So it made sense to bring them together I think. Lisandro is found in Rose, and vice versa. There is a kind of mirror effect. It’s a very interesting relationship. With ups and downs, it’s very intense.

Did it immediately stick between you and Vanessa Demouy on the set?

Yes, immediately. It was very easy to work with Vanessa. We really wanted to tell the story of these two somewhat lost human beings. We both created a real working relationship. We went to tap into our respective personal weaknesses. And I must say that it was a real meeting both on a human level and on a professional level. I loved working with Vanessa, it was a pleasure to arrive on set every day and know that we were going to tour together.

According to you, is Lisandro really in love with Rose?

I think that with Rose, Lisandro has found someone who does not put him at odds. A woman who respects him and listens to him. She doesn’t think only of herself, or of her work. And so, yeah, I think he actually has feelings for her. Maybe not to the point of leaving everything, but he feels supported, and that’s important to him. And this natural support, he said to himself that it could turn into love. But Lisandro knows that Rose is taken and that she is very in love with Antoine (Frédéric Diefenthal), so it is a very complicated situation.

Vanessa Demouy recently told us that Rose would end up confessing the truth to Antoine about his affair with Lisandro. What will be the consequences for Lisandro?

The consequences will be multiple. At school level of course, but also with Antoine, who helped him a lot with his son, it should not be forgotten. If Lisandro was able to find Esteban, it is thanks to Antoine who went to look for him 60 kilometers from the school, because my character could not go there because of his electronic bracelet. So obviously he feels a bit guilty about Antoine. And he also feels that he could come out of this situation as a loser, because his feelings for Rose are stronger than those Rose feels for him. They are at two different levels in this relationship.

Finally, the synthesis of this intrigue is that Lisandro could lose everything, right? His son, his job, Antoine’s confidence, and possibly Rose too …

Yes, completely. Lisandro will be pushed to the limit. He feels like he’s losing everything. And that’s why all of this is going to be resolved by a heroic, desperate, impulsive act. A suicidal act, I want to say (laughs). This is the only solution he will find because he is really caught in a vice.

Can we hope, beyond this intrigue, to soon learn more about Lisandro’s past, and in particular the reasons which led him to prison?

Yes, we will find out. It will not be said explicitly, but we will understand why he has this electronic bracelet.

This is your first time playing in a daily soap opera. So it’s a whole new rhythm, a new way of working too. After three months of broadcasting, and about six months of filming, what assessment do you draw from the beginnings of Here everything begins?

It’s very interesting to work at this speed. It’s one hour per streak, you put yourself under pressure to give your best, and that’s what is exciting about filming a daily soap opera. We build things in the moment, on the set, with the directors. The other day, I shot with Christophe Barraud, who is a genius director. He concentrated three sequences in one, with a sequence shot. We went from the restaurant to the kitchen, it was wonderful. But to make sure that the series is so successful and qualitative, we have to give, all, the best of ourselves. It’s not always easy, because you have to know your text inside out, and therefore work a lot beforehand, but it’s very exciting.

We will see you soon on TF1 still in season 11 of Clem, whose filming ended in early February. What can you tease about these new episodes?

It’s a season that will surprise people a lot. The characters have changed a lot. And we’re coming back to more comedy, so that’s great. We even sometimes improvised on these new episodes. I felt on the set that the directors were very open to our proposals. We wanted to bring more lightness, and it was a lot more fun to shoot.

Do you have other upcoming projects, as an actor or as a singer, that you can talk about, despite the complicated health context that we all know?

For the moment I am fully in Here everything begins. I want to concentrate a little on the series because we have been touring since July 24th and, during the first months, I had to juggle with season 11 of Clem and the promotion of my album “Plein soleil”. I had even started rehearsals for my tour, which I was ultimately unable to start due to the health situation. So for now my main focus is Here It All Begins.

And, then there might be Clem season 12, but at the moment we don’t know, so I can’t commit to other things too much. But as soon as possible I obviously want to go on stage and do this Plein Soleil tour. And there are other little things that are also being prepared on the music side. Not to mention the release of the film Les Cobayes, which was initially due out in November and which we are impatiently awaiting a new date. I can’t wait for people to see it. They will discover me in another register because it is auteur cinema. It’s interesting for me to be able to play in projects where I’m not expected, so I hope to have more opportunities like these in the future.

Interview by telephone on February 9, 2021.