BEST OF FESTS

À PIED D’ŒUVRE

2025 / 92 min / color

The protagonist of Valérie Donzelli’s film – winner of the Best Screenplay award at the Venice Film Festival – is Paul Marquet (a brilliant performance by Bastien Bouillon), a successful commercial photographer. Despite his professional stability, Paul decides to abandon his lucrative career to devote himself entirely to writing, since he has already published three books that were critically acclaimed, if not commercially successful.

When his wife and children leave for Canada and his publisher rejects the latest draft of his new book, Paul finds himself backed into a corner. His savings dwindle at an alarming rate, but he refuses to return to his former profession. Instead, he starts using an app that helps him find odd physical jobs, like mowing lawns or assembling furniture.

Through these jobs, he discovers a new reality where every employer tries to pay as little as possible and might still leave him a bad review. Donzelli’s film is a clash of two worlds: the idealistic vision of an artist’s independence versus the harsh realities of capitalism. With a touch of self-irony, the French director wonders whether a good artist has to be a starving artist.

• Valladolid IFF – Best Feature Film;
• Luxembourg FF – Audience Award