Direct Action

presented by Field Recordings
FIlm - Wed 12 February 2025
WORM Rotterdam
Start → 19:30
End → 23:00

Direct Action
by Guillaume Cailleau and Ben Russell
2024, France, 216 minutes, French and Moroccan Arabic with English subtitles

In Direct Action, filmmakers/artists Guillaume Cailleau and Ben Russell explore collective resistance and ecological activism through the story of the ZAD (Zone to Defend) in Notre-Dame-des-Landes, France. This community stopped an airport project and transformed into a site of ecological resilience.

Filmed between 2022 and 2023, the documentary follows the lives of activists and farmers as they navigate ecological and social challenges. The narrative includes the 2023 Battle of Sainte-Soline, a protest against water privatization met with state violence, highlighting the stakes of environmental justice.

Using a Super 16mm camera, the filmmakers employ a style rooted in slow cinema, characterized by static shots and prolonged takes. This deliberate pacing mirrors the ZAD’s rhythms and emphasizes the depth of collective experiences and the environment’s subtleties. Influences from filmmakers like Chantal Akerman and Frederick Wiseman shape this meditative approach, creating space for reflection on the tensions and aspirations within the community. The film won several major awards, ao at the Berlinale and the Locarno Film Festival.

"The film transcends traditional documentary storytelling, presenting a meditative exploration of a community’s daily life and their harmonious coexistence with nature."
— Clarisse Fabre, Le Monde

*Please note the screening will start 1 hour earlier than usual because of the long running time!

🩷🩷🩷Cineville valid at the door and online on the day itself 🩷🩷🩷