LE CONCOURS

It’s competition day. The aspiring filmmakers cross the heavy front gate of the Grande .cole for the first, and perhaps, last time. Each of them dreams of cinema, but also of success. All hopes are allowed, all worries too. The young people dream and doubt. The jury members ponder and look for their heirs. From the arrival of the candidates to the decisions of the jury members, the film explores the clash between two generations and the difficult selection process organized by our contemporary societies.

CLAIRE SIMON was born in Great Britain, but it was in France where she developed a career full of international awards. Her adventurous spirit led her to study ethnology and to first come into contact with film in the Argel film library, where she did a course on editing and joined the editing team of Dora Et La Lanterne Magique (Pascal Kan.,1977). But Simon wanted to further her knowledge and learning, and she enrolled in the Ateliers Varan, founded by Jean Rouch as spaces to train in hands-on documentary making. There she discovered Direct Cinema and directed her first short film, Tandis Que J’agonise (1982)