Castle to Castle

September 1940. Henri Marre arrives alone in Vichy as the authoritarian regime settles in. Broke, estranged from his family, and carrying copies of his self-published manifesto Notre Salut (Our Salvation), the 49-year-old is determined to secure what he believes is his rightful place in the new administration. In his writing, Henri sets out his patriotic convictions and his engineer’s methodology: efficiency above all. Claiming he wants to help save France after defeat, he does whatever is required to remain useful, serving the machinery of the new order with increasing skill. But he may be pursuing something more urgent: escape from his own ruin

Cassandre, 26, is a flight attendant for a low-cost airline. Based in Lanzarote, she’s always willing to take on extra hours and carries out her duties with robotic efficiency. On the side, she just goes with the flow and floats between Tinder, parties and lazy days. When she suddenly gets dismissed, she is forced to return home.

Frank, a man of action who worked his way up all by himself, dedicates his life to work. No matter the place or the circumstances, be it day or night, he’s on the phone, handling the cargo ships he charters for major companies. But when he has to deal with a crisis situation, Frank makes a brutal decision and gets fired. Profoundly shaken, betrayed by a system to which he gave his all, he has to progressively question himself to save the one connection that still matters to him: the bond he’s managed to maintain with his youngest daughter, Mathilde.

It's a film of highways, tourists on transhumance, concrete picnic tables, queues for toilets, warm melons and carwashes. It's the film of a man who wants to leave and a little boy who holds him back. It's the summer movie.

Unable to meet all the demands of his job and family anymore, Mathieu feels he's in a mid-life crisis and hurriedly leaves for the forest. His relatives are left by themselves, faced with his sudden departure and their choices.

In 17 chapters, the film sketches the distress of a local agent after his day's work. Among others: body searches, the inner emptiness, Wednesday afternoons at the Fnac, the beloved and lost woman, coaching, the hot lines of internet service providers, respect in public space, the "7 words of Christ on the cross", the recycling of glass bottles, melancholy.

Judith attempts to work out why her partner appears not to be that interested in her, whilst other men appear to care more.

Michel is a trainee for Dagosto, technical managers for a social housing project. Michel accidentally breaks the central boiler and doesn't dare confess his mistake to his boss.

A film in three chapters, with earth glasses, colonoscopies, scams, a mountain... and many other surprises. Directed by five directors without complexes with a shabby hero. Which starts badly but ends well. Or the opposite.

In different Brussels living rooms and bathrooms, parents cut their children’s hair. This mundane yet intimate act reveals a world of emotion and connection. While the children resist or, on the contrary, completely surrender to the moment, parents conscientiously try to accomplish their task. Between scissors and clippers, silence and conversation, tender rituals unfold that reveal the bond between parent and child.

Formule 1 Hotels are ultra cheap establishments commonly found in peri-urban zones: a low cost way to “inhabit” the world. Behind the doors to the rooms, the uniformity of the space, reduced to the strict functional minimum, reveals the tension inherent in each human life: sedentary versus nomadic, excess versus restraint, routine versus survival. While the main character of Rooms Without a View is a tightly formatted hotel, its residents are not so easy to package. They use, abuse and cause mayhem in this sleep machine dream.

This is the story of a son who wants to spend time alone with his mother. This is the story of a father who doesn't want his son to see his mother alone. This is the story of a mother who never knew what she wanted. This is the story of just about everyone.

Sarah takes her two sons Théo and Daniel to IKEA to choose a bed, choose a table, choose meatballs or salmon, choose a lamp, choose.

Program of two films: Rien sauf l'été by Claude Schmitz and Le film de l'été by Emmanuel Marre. Languid bodies in the middle of a garden, highway rest areas, flowers and gas stations, bike rides, birds chirping, a nightclub, a melon, a beer, a swim... with the sweetness and melancholy of any good summer interlude. These are the movies of the summer. Two beautiful escapes to take the time to live and the time to film.