PIQUE-NIQUE

Christophe Schaeffer / France / 6 minutes

Synopsis

Two girls sit down on a sunny beach for a picnic. But will birds allow it?

No poster, nor trailer, nor any other still to illustrate this (short) review… For this like-no-other object, let’s do an article like no other.

After an almost Hitchcock-ish intro, pixels’ digital jumble moves on to pebbles’. The black & white picture is so contrasted and sharpened that everything seems unreal. The unusual frame surprises, then becomes more and more legible, harmonises. Sound taunts us, in an unconventional but effective way. Even the title will get an unexpected dimension in the end.

This short-film’s technical experimentations create a unique atmosphere that immediately seduced our team. Hints of fun, contemplative aspect, and... happenstance (we guess?), notably in the last shot. It’s crazy enough to seem to have its place in a museum’s video exhibition, but with a shade of narration that still links it to the art of Cinema. We could not miss out on it.

Conclusion...

...of the notice Christophe Schaeffer provided with his submission form, like a kind of mantra: Nothing is staged, nothing is performed — the film captures life in its immediate presence. If it is trickery, that’s hilarious and creates good illusion. And if it’s true, then the principle and result of « Pique-nique » become even more fascinating!

O.N-P.

« Pique-nique » joins official selection for the Little Croco Festival’s third edition, nominated in the Experimental category.