Direct Action (Film Fest Ghent)

12 October, 2024 - 16 October, 2024
KASKcinema, Ghent

 

Sat 12 October - 14h15 KASKcinema
screening + Director's Talk: Guillaume Cailleau

Sun 13 October - 14h30 KASKcinema
screening + Q&A

Wed 16 October - 14h00 KASKcinema
screening

Direct Action

Guillaume Cailleau, Ben Russell
,
DE, FR
,
2024
,
216'

Artists / filmmakers Ben Russell and Guillaume Cailleau pitched their tents for two years at ZAD (zone à défendre), the now-famous occupation in Notre-Dame-des-Landes, France, near Nantes. Farmers, anarchists and other activists have been fighting against the construction of an airport for years, and, on the occasion of several eviction attempts, have been subjected to impressive acts of violence. In 41 long takes, a stunning 216-minute challenge, this utopia develops into a fully-fledged alternative to a society where 'community' and 'living together' are gradually proving to be hollow words. By comprehensively foregrounding the daily life of the occupation, Russell and Cailleau raise the legitimate question of what exactly 'direct action', in a sustained struggle against the far-right of political power, can or should be.