Grand Paris / Ville éternelle

“Such forays into the other side of the suburbs, inspired by American cinema (The Truman Show, Donnie Darko, Take Shelter, etc.) have been all the rage for several years now in French TV series (Mytho, OVNI(s), etc.). And yet, Martin Jauvat has managed to break the mould, by blending the American paradigm with typically French spirit with humour and finesse, cheeky wit and a light touch, thanks to his protagonists’ double lives (RATP ticket inspector by day, alien enthusiast by night) and the buildings used in the film (the TDF radio tower in Romainville, which turns out to be the receiver for strange phenomena). While some scenes are somewhat superfluous, it doesn’t take away from the fact that Grand Paris reveals a self-taught, resourceful and wonderfully smart filmmaker.” Maroussia Dubreuil, Le Monde, 27 May 2022. 

Martin Jauvat, Grand Paris, France, 2022, 80 min 
With Mahamadou Sangaré, Martion Jauvat, Sébastien Chassagne, William Lebghil 
Selected for the ACID programme, Cannes Film Festival, in 2022 
Special preview event before the film’s release in cinemas

Followed by 
Garance Kim, Ville Éternelle, France, 2021, 20 min 
With Martin Jauvat, Garance Kim 
First Film Award and Youth Award, Côté Court Festival in Pantin, in 2022 

On a public holiday, in the middle of Seine-et-Marne, Lili waits for a bus to go to the airport. She runs into Thibault, a former schoolmate who she doesn’t remember at all. The bus doesn’t come and she decides to walk there. Thibault accompanies her anyway. They get to know each other again and form a bond.