Sunday, SEPT 11, from 20:00
AT CinÉma Elvire Popesco

About the film

Documentary, 114’, 2022, France
D: Thierry Demaizière and Alban Teurlai

In the heart of Paris, a prestigious high school takes an audacious bet: integrate students from working-class districts and make them break the circle of school failure through dance and hip hop. Rookies tells their story.

Rookies premiered earlier this year at the Berlin Film Festival, where it was screened in the Generation section.

ABOUT THE DIRECTORS

THIERRY DEMAIZIÈRE began his career as a reporter for RTL in 1985, during which he traveled to China, Afghanistan, Somalia, Iran and Israel. He was the only French radio journalist present in Baghdad during the first Gulf War. From 1997, Thierry Demaizière is entrusted with a daily interview on RTL, where he receives topical personalities. As an interviewer-portraitist, his unique tone and sensitivity quickly became a real trademark : Thierry Demaizière "tells" his subjects as closely and fairly as possible, to reveal them with complexity and richness. In 2001, Thierry Demaizière goes from radio to television: he realizes the famous "Portrait" of the weekly program Sept à Huit on TF1 until 2018.

In 2004, he met ALBAN TEURLAI, editor of numerous short films, clips and advertising films. Thierry Demaizière and Alban Teurlai begin to co-direct documentaries for the most important French broadcasters, from France Télévisions to Canal+. They define themselves as portraitists, directing 11 films in ten years, mainly sensitive and elegant documentaries of celebrities: Karl Lagerfeld, Vincent Lindon, Fabrice Lucchini, Lilian Thuram, and unknowns : Couples, Squaddies...

Their films are distinguished by their formal dimension: these almost impressionistic portraits benefit from an exceptional aesthetic signature, both in the image and the editing. Reset, which traces the adventure of Benjamin Millepied since his appointment as director of the ballet at the Paris Opera, will enjoy extraordinary critical success and gave them a place in the official selection of the TRIBECA Festival in 2016. Rocco, a feature film released in 2017 in France, was also a critical success, both in France and abroad. Lourdes, selected in the category Best Documentary of the 2019’s César and released in France in May 2019, will be a success in theaters. Finally, Move, a documentary series for Netflix about six great choreographers: Akram Khan, Ohad Naharin, Lil Buck & Jon Boogz, Israel Galvan and Kimiko Versatile.