Cécile Lestrade

Facing Darkness

Following Bosnia and Herzegovina’s declaration of independence in April 1992, Bosnian Serb troops besieged and bombed Sarajevo. Over a period of four years, five young filmmakers documented the bombardments and daily life during the siege—for some, the aim was simply to report the news; for others, it was a way of dealing with their fears.

The Lost Boys of Mercury

As children in the 60s and 70s, Dédé, Michel and Daniel were sent to the Belle Étoile Catholic “correctional” facility located in the Savoie region of France. There, they were beaten, humiliated, starved and broken. With the help of director Clémence Davigo, they finally reunite to break their silence. A moving chronicle in search of memory and justice.

Stuntwomen

The daily life of Petra, Virginie, and Estelle, three stuntwomen, from the dangerous film sets, where they face all kinds of deadly dangers, to the safety of their homes.

Le Journal d’une femme nwar

Rose, 29 years of age, has one goal: leaving France and “going back to Noirie” [Blackland]. When Matthieu Bareyre, one of her closest friends, read her diary and offered to make it into a movie, she was given a once-in-a-lifetime opportunity to deal with some old demons of hers.

That Which Does Not Kill

Ada is 19. She agrees to have dinner at the home of a boy she knows. It all happens very quickly, she does not defend herself. It is in 2013, after a screening of her first film, that Alexe Poukine meets her: a woman of her age who shares with her something that happened nine years before and that she does not know what to do with.

Young and Alive

In the months following the terrorist attacks in Paris, the youth have seized the nights, looking for a sense of belonging in a world they have ceased to understand. Seeking to change the rules, led by new faces, driven by their values and ideals, they open a new dialogue, challenge the state and are getting ready for a new kind of revolution.

Young and Alive

In the months following the terrorist attacks in Paris, the youth have seized the nights, looking for a sense of belonging in a world they have ceased to understand. Seeking to change the rules, led by new faces, driven by their values and ideals, they open a new dialogue, challenge the state and are getting ready for a new kind of revolution.

Samouni Road

In the rural outskirts of Gaza City a small community of farmers, the Samouni extended family, is about to celebrate a wedding. It's going to be the first celebration since the latest war. Amal, Fuad, their brothers and cousins have lost their parents, their houses and their olive trees. The neighborhood where they live is being rebuilt. As they replant trees and plow fields, they face their most difficult task: piecing together their own memory. Through these young survivors' recollections, Samouni Road conveys a deep, multifaceted portrait of a family before, during and after the tragic event that changed its life forever.