Usually, when you hear filmmakers talk about their influences growing up, you tend to hear auteur-heavy hits like The Godfather or The Deer Hunter. Film isn’t all about the auteur-heavy, though. I, for instance, watched Cheech and Chong’s Up in Smoke and went, “Yep, this is what I want to do.” For Juliette Cochet, hers was also a bit out of left field—think of Mission: Impossible – Ghost Protocol. Now, I can legitimately write a thousand words on how Ghost Protocol is the best Mission: Impossible, but this isn’t what this is about. This is about Juliette and her reinvention from a quiet French suburb to the Safdie-esque world that is Manhattan.

I really hate calling people a “breath of fresh air” because, most of the time, they’re not. It’s just an easy trope to fall back on when describing someone who isn’t following the status quo. Juliette actually breaks through that trope. France is already one of the most respected beacons of the arts in the world; leaving it for another? That is not the norm. Imagine having to really push your drive through a second language, as well as get into the mechanics of its nuances (which is not something they teach in school). Knowing the language and really getting into the slang and day-to-day can be a feat, but conquering it is doable with enough practice. She did that.

I met Juliette on a photo shoot, and I was thoroughly impressed by how quickly she switched hats. She was an art director, a photographer, and an actress. Multi-faceted is where you want to be in this industry, and that she was. She has been able to find her footing, and this new world is her blank canvas. But the proof is in the pudding. She has been working extensively, ascending the independent circuit with a vengeance. Between studying at the prestigious NYFA (New York Film Academy) and building her credentials, she was able to get on stage as Lila in the Off-Broadway play, Woman Who Cut. This performance showcased her ability to play naïve and optimistic. This is the polar opposite of her thesis film, Eternity with You, a devastating tale that takes inspiration from Rabbit Hole.

This duality might fracture lesser actors, but Cochet views pressure as a stabilizing force. “My real pressure is when I have nothing to do,” she admits. “That’s the hard thing for me to deal with.” The industry noticed: her performance as Becca earned her Best Actress at the Stockholm City Film Festival, adding to a growing shelf of accolades that includes a Best Actress win at the MultiDimensional Independent Film Festival for Kaisar Maxutov’s I’m Afraid.

Cochet is also diving into a completely improvised feature film directed by Maxutov. Surrounded by an ensemble cast that includes Manuel Zopiyaxtle and Dasha Zhykharska, she is forced to surrender to the immediate, chaotic present.

“I personally find ideas in somebody else’s ideas,” Cochet explains, her perspective shifting from the romanticism of performance to the analytical precision of a scholar. “When I have a script to decrypt, I can go extremely deep into it, finding crazy scenarios.”

For Cochet, the text is not a constraint, but an expansive playground. Improv taught her to be present, but the written word is where she exercises her true authority as an actress. It is in the spaces between lines, the punctuation of a writer’s intent, where she builds her worlds.

The universe has been paying attention, though, with her first major film role in The Blue Woman. The film, directed by Kyle Sharp, has Cochet playing Marie, a character she describes as deeply ambiguous and protected. Marie is not just a “role” but a human being requiring defense. The performance might divide viewers, but what is film if not pushing the envelope?

But it is her next project that promises to firmly cement her status as one of the most compelling imports in modern cinema. Cochet is set to take on the pivotal role of Maria in the upcoming romantic drama Waves at Dawn. If her previous work has been an exploration of confinement, grief, and comedic lightness, Waves at Dawn offers an expansive landscape of emotional romanticism. The character of Maria requires a specific vulnerability—a willingness to open oneself up completely in front of a camera crew, a feat Cochet regards with immense respect when observing her peers.

To prepare for the expanding dimensions of her career, Cochet treats her life outside the camera as an ongoing apprenticeship. She studies photography, practices martial arts, and sits at the piano—a disciplined daily ritual chosen as a tribute to her grandfather. “Acting is a skill like piano,” she says, dismantling the myth of effortless talent. “You need to practice a bit every day to get better at it.”

Watching Juliette navigate the ever-changing world of the arts is a fantastic opportunity to see what the new wave of stars in this industry looks like. Nothing is accidental; all work is earned. This isn’t the wide-eyed teen who was mesmerized by Tom Cruise saving the day anymore; she is the face of what is to come. She is no longer a dreamer, but the author of her very promising story.

Photos by Kaisar Maxutov