Avant l’effondrement

A sweltering summer in Paris provides the backdrop in award-winning French author Alice Zeniter’s highly anticipated directorial debut.

Teaming up with partner and co-director Benoît Volnais, Avant l’effondrement is the second foray into filmmaking for the acclaimed writer of L’Art de perdre. A Big Screen Competition contender, the pair draw on a world of political upheaval and personal conflict through the life of campaign manager Tristan, interpreted by rising star Niels Schneider, who is preparing to fight an election for his left-leaning party. With the soaring city temperatures pushing everyone to the brink, the arrival of an anonymous letter proves devastating and throws Tristan’s world into turmoil.

Having published her first novel as a teenager, Zeniter is no stranger to tackling complex issues and characters in her stories. Flitting between the cramped, polluted Parisian streets and the calm, agrarian idyll of Brittany, the tense drama pits the stresses of city life against a utopian countryside. As Tristan is forced to come to terms with his past, he risks his career and relationships to uncover the truth.

– Justine Maybank

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