Patrick Lapierre

A high-class prostitute by choice, Nelly Arcan’s colorful life is recreated in a multi-layered and stylish mix of make-believe and memoir, revealing Nelly’s alter egos: the neurotic writer, the vulnerable lover, the call girl and the star. Nelly shocked the literary world with her elegant writing and the lurid details of sex work in her autobiographical first novel, Whore, which became a critically acclaimed bestseller. Despite unprecedented success, Nelly’s remarkable life ended in tragedy.

Benjamin tells his ex-girlfriend, Angie, that he joined a cell of left-wing terrorists to get revenge on her former boss, who owns a right-wing radio station. His story blends conceptual artists, amateur theatre troupes, hallucinogenic vinyl record and other magical powers. All that nonsense leave Angie wondering if he made that up only to win her back.

A lone gunman perched on a rooftop grows bored while awaiting his next victim. A mother records a video for an audition for a televised singing competition. A young girl carries water containers and must cross a dangerous area before nightfall. Distant explosions echo, nothing alarming. Time stands still, allowing the three figures to find refuge in their luminous dreams. The sun will set soon, carrying them away. Rituals Under a Scarlet Sky tells the tale of a daily life where hope survives despite the tragedy that attempts to engulf it.

A Russian woman is back in her childhood country setting, and strolling in a field at night brings back many distant memories.