Pascale Ferran

The dawn of the 20th century: L’Apollonide, a luxurious and traditional brothel in Paris, is living its last days. In this closed world, where some men fall in love and others become viciously harmful, the women share their secrets, their fears, their joys and their pains.

Is there such a thing as strictly feminine cinema? Is it more difficult for a woman than for a man to direct a film? Is gender parity necessary in the industry? Actress and producer Julie GAYET and actor and director Mathieu BUSSON ask these questions to twenty French woman filmmakers, who face a camera together for the first time. After over an hour of lively, informal, spontaneous and funny interviews, it becomes obvious that these issues are still problematic and definitely worthy of a documentary. As Mia HANSEN-LØVE remarks, “In the eyes of the people, a woman’s film is always a woman’s film, while a man’s movie is simply… a movie”.

What passes on two faces just before a kiss? And right after?

A handful of student revolutionaries from the Seventies meet up 30 years later to plan a robbery. This is not entirely correct, because they are friends, anyway, and always have been. They play cards together and go to each others’ birthday parties, have wives and children and probably mortgages. Romain Goupil’s film appears to be a throwback to the experimental days of cinema verite. Either that or it’s a home movie, shot with a video camera, to an improvised script or no script at all.

After a crippling injury leaves her husband impotent, Lady Chatterly is torn between her love for her husband and her physical desires. With her husband's consent, she seeks out other means of fulfilling her needs.

After a crippling injury leaves her husband impotent, Lady Chatterly is torn between her love for her husband and her physical desires. With her husband's consent, she seeks out other means of fulfilling her needs.

An overstressed American businessman and a French chambermaid make a connection at an airport hotel in Paris.

An overstressed American businessman and a French chambermaid make a connection at an airport hotel in Paris.

What passes on two faces just before a kiss? And right after?

Ten young people (boys and girls) at the age at which all is possible. They meet, they love, they choose. The film comes and goes between all those people, revealing their anguish, their dreams, depicting the portrait of a generation of the '90s which has both the fury and the fear of life.

Ten young people (boys and girls) at the age at which all is possible. They meet, they love, they choose. The film comes and goes between all those people, revealing their anguish, their dreams, depicting the portrait of a generation of the '90s which has both the fury and the fear of life.

It’s summer, on the beach of this little town in Brittany, a man is building a sand castle. A few people watch him. We will be told the story of three of them: a boy, Jumbo, aged 9; François and his sister Zaza. All of them had to deal with the death of somebody they cherished.

It’s summer, on the beach of this little town in Brittany, a man is building a sand castle. A few people watch him. We will be told the story of three of them: a boy, Jumbo, aged 9; François and his sister Zaza. All of them had to deal with the death of somebody they cherished.

With an off-beat sense of humor to match its erratic central character, this original comedy-drama features Jean-Philippe Ecoffey as Yves, a young man who works as a cop at night. The catch is that Yves turns to petty crime during the day, partly to impress Aurore (Aurelle Doazan), a nurse he idolizes from afar. His criminal hobby seems hard to understand, since it's doubtful that they will really get him anywhere with Aurore; besides, she already has a boyfriend. Nevertheless, Yves starts out by robbing a post office and ends up trying to run over Aurore's boyfriend, an act which finally gets him into serious trouble.

They are between 14 and 17 years old and live with other teenagers in a home in the heart of the Vosges forest. All of them have been placed there by social services.

A few days spent in Juan-les-Pins with Rosalind. A short trip to the Italian border, her smile... One letter, then two, sent to New York via Memphis. And for Philippe, the wait, of course.

Continuation of the essay on the cinema of Louis Skorecki through the relations of some young cinephiles.