Mimi has a simply wonderful per-
sonality. She’s quirky about life,
but serious about her work. She
doesn’t just paint portraits of pets,
she captures their essence.
We spoke with director Anthony
Maranville to learn more.
The walls were filled with Mimi’s
art and the art of her friends who
also have a naïve or primitive style.
Every time we went outside we
would notice people staring into
her shop window with grins on
their faces -- they were hypno-
tized by a display of postcards
Had you or your wife known
that showed off many of her pet
about Mimi before you walked
portraits.
into her shop?
We started to wonder, who is the
We had no clue who Mimi was.My magical artist who paints them?
wife, Shana, started work on a TV
series that filmed in New York dur-
Did you go there with the pur-
ing the summer. Our family need- pose of shooting a documentary
ed a place to stay and a friend’s
or just to check it out?
mother recommended her friend
By the time the third summer
Mimi’s apartment (Mimi spends her came around we decided we
summers in Denmark and rents out had to meet Mimi and she was
her place above the shop.)
everything we hoped she would
We instantly fell in love with the
be – fun, quirky, smart and very
apartment and for two summers
opinionated. She talked to us
we rented it, but never met. It
about her career and showed us
was like living in a Wes Anderson
her family portraits and we felt we
movie. Everything was so carefully had to document her and her pro-
curated – down to irregular folk art cess and find out more about her
coffee mugs and kitchen utensils. clients.
NJ STAGE - ISSUE 55
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