Lumière et compagnie (1995)

40 international directors were asked to make a short film using the original Cinematographe invented by the Lumière Brothers, working under conditions similar to those of 1895. There were ... See full summary »

Directors:

Theodoros Angelopoulos, Vicente Aranda,

Writer:

Philippe Poulet (original idea)

Stars:

Merzak Allouache, Jeffe Alperi, Pernilla August

Cast

Credited cast:
Merzak Allouache	...	Himself
Jeffe Alperi	...	Policeman (segment "David Lynch")
Theodoros Angelopoulos	...	Himself (as Théo Angelopoulos)
Romane Bohringer	...	(segment "Claude Miller")
Michele Carlyle	...	(segment "David Lynch")
Youssef Chahine	...	Himself
Lou Chapiteau	...	(segment "Claude Miller") (as sa petite fille Lou)
Marc Chapiteau	...	(segment "Claude Miller")
Antoine Duléry	...	(segment "Claude Lelouch")
Pascal Duquenne	...	(segment "Jaco Van Dormael")
Bruno Ganz	...	Damiel (segment "Wim Wenders")
Charles Gérard	...	(segment "Claude Lelouch")
Ticky Holgado	...	(segment "Claude Lelouch")
Isabelle Huppert	...	Récitante: Segment Abbas Kiarostami (voice)
James Ivory	...	Himself

Storyline

40 international directors were asked to make a short film using the original Cinematographe invented by the Lumière Brothers, working under conditions similar to those of 1895. There were three rules: (1) The film could be no longer than 52 seconds, (2) no synchronized sound was permitted, and (3) no more than three takes. The results run the gamut from Zhang Yimou's convention-thwarting joke to David Lynch's bizarre miniature epic.

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Plot Keywords:

surrealism | silent filmmaking | nudity | experiment | antique | 

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Genres:

Documentary

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Details

Country:

France Denmark Spain Sweden

Language:

French English Danish Norwegian Swedish Greek Japanese Mandarin

Release Date:

20 December 1995 (France)

Also Known As:

Lumiere i spólka

Filming Locations:

Athens, Greece

Company Credits

Production Co:

Cinétévé, La Sept-Arte, Igeldo Komunikazioa

Technical Specs

Runtime:

88 min

Sound Mix:

Mono

Color:

Black and White Color

Aspect Ratio:

1.33 : 1

Did You Know?

Connections

Features Baby's Dinner (1895)

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Soundtracks

"Fantasia - Opus 78"
Franz Schubert
Interprété par Maria João Pires (as Maria Joao Pirès)
ERATO Disque

User Reviews

Actually quite an impressive project

This video was given to me by a friend who knows that I look at film not merely as entertainment, but art as well. This project with its 40-odd 50 second vignettes done by a mix of directors of varying talents and celebrity, using an antiquated camera, gives an opportunity to see snapshots of their work as pure art. All of them are at least passable, with over half being very, very good. A few of them are truly outstanding, the most notable being Andre Konchalovsky's gem on life, death, temporality and nature. David Lynch's segment is a close second. I highly recommend this to any serious student of film as art.