Nuit obscure - „Ain’t I a Child?“

Die Vorfreude auf Europa ist groß, festgehalten in der einzigen Farbszene zu Beginn auf einem kleinen Boot. Fortan schlagen sich die jungen Männer aus Nordafrika durch Paris. Ihr Hauptquartier ist die Gegend um den die Nacht erhellenden Eiffelturm: Nässe, Hunger und Träume in kristallklarem Schwarz-Weiß. Zurück nach Spanien oder weiter nach Deutschland? Bis dahin Raufereien, Schlafen im Dreck und die letzte Hoffnung. Sylvain Georges Abschluss seiner monumentalen Trilogie über illegale Migration, die mit dem schier endlosen Warten in Marokko begann und nun in rasendem Stillstand endet. Ein Film aus der europäischen Gegenwart über eine ungewisse Zukunft. (Michael Pekler)

In Anwesenheit von Sylvain George und Ottavia Fragnito (Produzentin).

NUIT OBSCURE – “AIN’T I A CHILD?” is the third part of Sylvain George’s trilogy on migration. The two previous instalments were set in Melilla, a Spanish enclave in Morocco that functions as a kind of limbo where large numbers of young North Africans wait for a chance to cross over into Europe. While the filmmaker was not planning a third entry, this new work emerged organically when some of the teenagers who appeared in the earlier films arrived in France and contacted him. Eschewing conventional narrative for an observational approach, George films the boys against the backdrop of Parisian tourist sites or in secluded hideouts. Despite having made it to the continent they yearned for, their lives, perhaps unsurprisingly, haven’t changed much. Poor, undocumented and caught in a cycle of delinquency, they talk about their journeys, their suffering, their hopes for a better future, even though they can barely get through the day. In long scenes shot in high-contrast black and white, these teenagers shine forth as figures of resistance. Their presence and tenacity challenge the efficacy of migration policies; their playfulness and instinct for survival challenge those who condemn them to abjection and invisibility. (Cristina Álvarez López)

Sylvain George: NO BORDER (2008), L’IMPOSSIBLE – PAGES ARRACHÉES (2009), QU’ILS REPOSENT EN RÉVOLTE (DES FIGURES DE GUERRE) (2010), LES ÉCLATS (MA GUEULE, MA RÉVOLTE, MON NOM) (2012), THE CLOUDS (MY BLACK MAMA’S FACE) (2014), VERS MADRID: THE BURNING BRIGHT (2014), NOCTURNE BLANC CHASSEUR (2015), NOCTURNE (2015), JOLI MAI (QUE CEUX QUI QUI ONT TUÉ MOINS DE CENT FOIS ME JETTE LA PIERRE) (2016), YOUSSEF, LE VENT LA RAGE AVANT L’EXISTENCE (2016), PARIS IS A MOVEABLE FEAST (A FILM IN 18 WAVES) (2017), NUIT OBSCURE – FEUILLETS SAUVAGES (2022), NUIT OBSCURE – AU REVOIR ICI, N’IMPORTE OÙ (2023)