Anja Verderosa

Hugo is 19 years old. Like every summer, he spends his holidays on an Atlantic island, in the small family house. But this year is different: Hugo has undergone a physical transformation and arrives with his girlfriend, Queen, a beautician whose lively chatter and long, glittery nails contrast sharply with the young man’s modesty and shyness. Before long, the couple becomes the focus of everyone’s attention.

When their family restaurant is on the verge of closing, two cousins release rats in an attempt to set themselves up as pest control experts. That same summer, two young women rig the local beauty contest to promote their jewelry. Caught up in their chaotic schemes, these four resourceful young people searching for a better future eventually cross paths.

A struggling beauty influencer, Gabriel Rose dreams of becoming an actor. But he lacks both the talent and the connections. After yet another failed audition, he meets Stanislas, a privileged young man from the upper class, who offers him the chance to launch a jewelry brand. Gabriel sees this as an opportunity to gain access to Parisian high society, where everything seems easy, at least on the surface… Meanwhile, he becomes involved with Pauline, a young political ecology researcher. Torn between two worlds, Gabriel searches for his place between image and reality, the desire for success, and the need for love.

During a book signing in Normandy, Annie Ernaux, 70, revisits her memories of the summer of 1958, when she was 17. That summer, she left her hometown to work as a camp counsellor. At the first party, the head counsellor set out to deflower her. Finding him handsome, she lets him do it, as if against her will... Her body becomes a foreign place for her, an offering to be sacrificed.