Que ta joie demeure

An open-ended exploration of the energies and rituals of various workplaces. From one worker to another and one machine to the next; hands, faces, breaks, toil: what kind of absurdist, abstract dialogue can be started between human beings and their need to work? What is the value of the time we spend multiplying and repeating the same motions that ultimately lead to a rest – a state of repose whose quality defies definition. “I wanted to make an allegory about work, so I needed to film things steeped in connotation. There’s little room for the subtlety of filming an accountant, notary or security guard. I wanted there to be motion, hands exerting strength, doing heavy lifting; bodies moving very deliberately. I was necessarily drawn to industrial jobs, where everything seems amplified. It’s a cliché that the most ‘real’ and most ‘noble’ work is manual, repetitive, noisy, even dangerous. I dove right into that cliché. I wanted it to be explicit.” (Denis Côté)