‘Atelier de Conversation - Bernhard Braunstein’

Every year Brussels presents selections from three major German film festivals:  the Berlinale Forum, DOK Leipzig and Duisburg Film Week. From the latter, this year we are presenting Atelier de Conversation by Bernard Braunstein. Filmed in one of the great Paris libraries, this documentary is about people who have come to Paris from all over the world for the most diverse reasons, including students, refugees and business people. They are united in a desire to learn French, to become a part of this foreign city and to make a life and friends there.  Many are grappling with the language barrier and feel lonely and homesick. In this atelier, social and cultural barriers disappear as they discuss everyday life as well as such weighty subjects as love, religion and identity. The camera lingers on their faces, showing those who are speaking and those who are listening, immersing the audience in their gestures and expressions. This patience and calm lends to this documentary a great formal clarity.   In 2017, Atelier de conservation won the ARTE prize for best documentary at the Duisburg Film Week.