Portraits by Alain Cavalier - La gaveuse

Around the age of 3, children start to ask a whole lot of questions about the world around them. Often they start with "why" or "how". Each answer seems to lead to a new set of questions. It's the cycle of knowledge that runs its course. In his series of portraits, Alain Cavalier comes across as a veritable "child-filmmaker", eager to learn and constantly amazed by what makes up the daily lives of the ordinary people he films. Capturing the gestures, the tools, the techniques, the words... here, of this woman who has found her independence and a certain form of emancipation in her work as a goose feeder. From start to finish, he questions her, genuinely interested in understanding the details of her job, occasionally branching out into more personal aspects of her life. His enthusiasm is contagious, and the fascination is palpable. He skilfully alternates between highly technical and existential questions, offering us a complex portrait of this touching woman. In the process, the filmmaker also reveals himself to us, without artifice, unveiling both his inner world and the mechanics of his craft: lighting, shot length, missed takes, rehearsals. In the most generous way, he gives us access to the "hows" and "whys" of cinema, to the true meaning of documentary portrait.

Jason Burnham
Tënk editorial manager