Leg Up
Synopsis
At fourteen, Lila dreams of joining her middle school's girls' soccer team. With no support from her parents, she relies on her beloved older brother Nolan. Having just turned eighteen, he finds himself at a crossroads, facing legal responsibilities. On the day of the soccer team tryouts, Lila faces yet another maternal failure and finds herself stuck with her four-year-old little sister Romy. On the other side of town, Nolan has to make a big decision.
About
Julie Lerat-Gersant
Julie Lerat-Gersant was born in Caen in 1983. After studying at drama school, she co-founded La Piccola Familia with Thomas Jolly in 2006. Since then, she has worked in theater as an actress and playwright. In 2016, she co-wrote and directed the project Adolescences et territoire(s) (Adolescence and Territories) at the Odéon-Théâtre de l'Europe. In 2017, she co-wrote Aland, a feature film by Thomas Germaine, and, with the support of the Louvre and the Théâtre de la Poudrerie, wrote a new play. In 2018, she joined the Screenwriting Workshop at La Fémis, directed by Jacques Ackchoti. There she developed the first draft of the screenplay for her feature film. In 2020, she also trained in series writing at the CEEA in the workshop led by Fabrice de Costil. In 2022, she directed her first feature film, Petites, produced by Sophie Révil and Denis Carot (Escazal Films) and distributed by Haut et Court. The film was selected for the 75th Locarno International Film Festival in the Cinéastes du Présent section. It received the Independent Press Award and a special mention in the Youth Award at Locarno, as well as the Youth Award at Tübingen. It was released in theaters in February 2023. In 2023, her first young adult novel, Hop, hop, hop l'amour, was published by Scrinéo. She also directed a television documentary (La pouponnière, produced by Paper Moon), broadcast in 2024 on France 3. In 2025, she is preparing to direct her first play, 1729 secondes (premiering in early 2026).
