Renowned Swiss filmmaker Claude Barras, the master storyteller behind the slow-motion animated breakout film, “My Life As a Zucchini”, makes a triumphant return to the Cannes Film Festival this year after an eight-year hiatus with his new feature, “Sauvages.” Barras’s previous feature, “My Life As a Zucchini”, premiered in Director’s Fortnight, was a 2016 Oscar-nominated feature, further solidifying his status as a filmmaker to watch.
Barras’s ‘Sauvages’ delves deep into the emotional journey of its protagonist, Kéria, an 11-year-old girl living with her father, a Swiss ethnologist employed by a logging company, in the rural suburbs of the province of Sarawak, on the island of Borneo. Modern and drawn to urban culture, Kéria has distanced herself from her roots and tradition following the loss of her mother, a member of the Penan community. The film’s narrative beautifully unfolds the events that lead Kéria to reconnect with her Indigenous roots, as well as her Penan cousin Selaï, in a poignant and relatable manner.
The film’s synopsis reads: In Borneo, at the edge of the tropical forest, Keria is given a baby orangutan that has been rescued from the oil palm plantation where her father works. At the same time, her young cousin Selaï has come to live with them, seeking refuge from the conflict between his nomadic family and the logging companies. Together, Keria, Selaï, and the little ape will battle the destruction of their ancestral forest home, now under greater threat than ever. But for Keria, the fight will also allow her to discover the truth of her own origins.
“Sauvages” will debut in the Young Audiences section at Cannes, where Pablo Berger’s Robot Dreams premiered last year. Anton is handling worldwide sales for Sauvages, and Anatomy of a Fall producer Haut et Court will distribute the film in France. “Savages” produced by Nicolas Burlet and co-produced by Laurence Petit, Barbara Letellier, Carole Scotta, Vincent Tavier, Hugo Deghilage, Annemie Degryse, and Olivier Glassey. Starring are Babette De Coster, Martin Verset, Laetitia Dosch, Benoît Poelvoorde, Pierre-Isaïe Duc, and Paysan Sailyvia. Barras co-wrote the screenplay with Catherine Paillé.
