Sandro Bertossa

The short film "L'Ottimista Sorridente" was Luis Sergio Person's graduation work when he was studying directing between 1961 and 1963 at the Centro Sperimentale di Cinematografia in Rome, Italy.

Since 1935, inspired by the Catholic writer/lyricist/essayist and victim of World War One, Charles Péguy, students (at first from the Sorbonne) have set off on a pilgrimage towards the cathedral in Chartres. The journey takes about two to three days, Moritz de Hadeln’s documentary of the pilgrimage, called Le Pèlé for short, lasts roughly an hour. Four crews followed the groups – there are many ways leading to Chartres – on their journey through the countryside.