Portrait d'Orson Welles

Tant qu'il y aura des enfants il y aura des clowns

In Mexico, young orphan Ricky's life will be turned upside down when the most famous clown in the country comes to his village.

Le Japon insolite

Director François Reichenbach assembled 90 minutes of footage on Japanese rituals and customs, martial arts, evidence of Western commercialism, and the nearly blank faces of urban dwellers who seem to wrap themselves in anonymity as a protection against the crowded masses. Without the benefit of interviews or analyses of what is passing before one's eyes on the screen, the parade of Japanese scenes seems to take place at some distance -- making the viewer a definite outsider with no friendly interpreter to ground his or her perspective.

Spécial cinéma

Marcello Mastroianni, Isabelle Adjani, Alain Delon, Martin Scorsese, Woody Allen... the biggest stars in cinema were welcomed by Christian Defaye on his show Spécial cinéma. Between intimate confessions from actors and immersion in the world of the greatest filmmakers, Christian Defaye took viewers on a journey into the fascinating world of cinema for nearly thirty years.

J'ai tout donné

An intimate cinéma vérité style documentary following french mega star Johnny Hallyday's summer tour.

Houston, Texas

A film-crew follow the investigation of a cop killing.

Michel Legrand, sans demi-mesure

This documentary recounts the life of the late composer Michel Legrand, known for his works on Les Parapluies de Cherbourg or Les Demoiselles De Rochefort with the famous director Jacques Demy.

The Lovers of the France

Seeing an opportunity to make a financial recovery for the family, a nobleman attempts to wed his son to his wealthy friend's daughter. His plan is to send the boy for a cruise on the SS France with the prospective female. Upon arriving to meet the lovely girl, the young man switches places with his valet. Unbeknownst to him, however, is the fact that the girl has pulled a similar deception. Though Jean-Marc Ripert is responsible for much of the cinematography in this New Wave comedy, it is Francois Reichenbach who handled the camera for many of the ocean-liner scenes.

Cinépanorama

Spécial Bardot

And the image created the myth... Bardot as a brunette, blonde or redhead. Bardot in thigh-high boots, mini-dress or swimsuit, Bardot in London, at La Madrague or on a Harley... In all her states, BB sings with Gainsbourg and Sacha Distel: "Bonnie and Clyde", "Comic strip", "Mister Sun"... Reichenbach's camera sublimates the icon.

Apostrophes

Apostrophes was a live, weekly, literary, prime-time, talk show on French television created and hosted by Bernard Pivot. It ran for fifteen years (724 episodes) from January 10, 1975, to June 22, 1990, and was one of the most watched shows on French television (around 6 million regular viewers). It was broadcast on Friday nights on the channel France 2 (which was called "Antenne 2" from 1975 to 1992). The hourlong show was devoted to books, authors and literature. The format varied between one-on-one interviews with a single author and open discussions between four or five authors.

Houston Texas

A report on this extraordinary boom town that owes its fortune to oil.

Le Grand Échiquier

Le Grand Échiquier is a French variety television program created and presented by Jacques Chancel. It aired at 8:30 pm on the first channel of the ORTF from January 12, 1972 to July 12, 1972, then on the second color channel of the ORTF from September 1972 to December 1974, and finally on Antenne 2 from January 1975 to December 21, 1989. The program returned to France 2 on December 20, 2018 and is hosted by Anne-Sophie Lapix.

F for Fake

Documents the lives of infamous fakers Elmyr de Hory and Clifford Irving. De Hory, who later committed suicide to avoid more prison time, made his name by selling forged works of art by painters like Picasso and Matisse. Irving was infamous for writing a fake autobiography of Howard Hughes. Welles moves between documentary and fiction as he examines the fundamental elements of fraud and the people who commit fraud at the expense of others.

Medicine Ball Caravan

Documentary of a 154-person bus and truck tour that set out to spread the gospel of flower power to the hinterlands of the U.S.

Do You Hear the Dogs Barking?

Carrying his son on his back, a man travels from place to place looking for a doctor to treat the sick boy. As they journey, the indio father tells the boy stories to keep him distracted. These stories reveal the life of native peoples in Mexico, both in the countryside and in cities, and they shed light on characteristic beliefs and rituals.

America as Seen by a Frenchman

At the end of the 1950s, French documentarian François Reichenbach spent eighteen months traveling the United States, documenting its diverse regions, their inhabitants, and their pastimes. The result is a journey through a multitude of different Americas, filtered through a French sensibility.