Nuit obscure - „Ain’t I a Child?“

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)

In the presence of Sylvain George and Ottavia Fragnito (producer).

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)