LES BONS CLIENTS & ARTE FRANCE Present a Film by Bruno
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LES BONS CLIENTS & ARTE FRANCE present A film by Bruno Aveillan © photographs by Bruno Aveillan THE PITCH RODIN DIVINO # INFERNO | 2 a 60-min documentary film directed by Bruno Aveillan written with Stephen Levy-Kuentz & Zoé Balthus produced by Les Bons Clients an ambitious and singular project, for delivery in January 2017 on the occasion of Auguste Rodin’s death centenary The portrait of one artist by another. World-renowned visual artist, photographer and director Bruno Aveillan, known for his commercial work for some of the world’s foremost international brands, turns his camera to the creative process of sculptor Auguste Rodin. Divino # Inferno is the story of one of the art world’s great masterpieces, a legendary sculpture that holds the key to the very personal genius of its creator, the immense Auguste Rodin, who moved endlessly back and forth between Heaven and Hell. The piece is called The Gates of Hell. No sculptor since Michelangelo had achieved anything of such astounding beauty. Shrouded in a veil of smoky mystery, The Gates of Hell was Rodin’s pet project for more than thirty years, although he never lived to see it completed. Simultaneously, a manifesto and a laboratory for all his masterpieces, it’s held onto its air of mystery over the years. All of the artist’s inspirations and techniques are expressed within it — encompassing the entire spectrum of the human condition, his own personal life, and all the women he ever loved. | 2 | 3 DIRECTOR’S NOTE I’m fascinated by the duality of this great master. The film is an ode to sculpture’s materials – whether Beyond the film’s form, the viewer will be fascinated In Rodin, creative genius and destructiveness clay modeling, marble carving or bronze forging. by this journey into the sculptor’s mind, by coexisted. His almost divine inspiration was locked These are ubiquitous, for they recall the physical understanding how Rodin’s genius developed, his | 4in a constant struggle with a destructive alter ego and sensual investment that sculpture entails. methods and experimentation, his successes and who shattered, split, cut, and tore up what he had failures. By the end, the audience will understand made, only to reassemble it, glue it back together, The film develops a quasi organic approach in the that, without passion, self-examination and tireless reseal it, reunite it, and turn it into something else. attention it gives to the sculptor’s body language work, talent is nothing. His single-mindedness was held against him till and to the movement of bodies in Rodin’s work. the end of his life. To get a better understanding of It will literally come to life through live flesh-and- Using never-before-seen footage pieced together the man and his creation, it is this creative process blood performances by some of the greatest from archival photos, the film is, at once, an that I’ll explore. performers on the contemporary dance scene. immersive experience and a cinematic inscape. It offers seamless and enduring bridges to other The Gates of Hell will be the narrative backbone The experimental nature of how The Gates of Hell forms of expression, such as contemporary art and for this film. was conceived and evolved is rife with narrative dance, photography, painting and digital imagery. elements that make for a passionate, moving and The film will bring together my own perspective suspenseful film. The tone will be cinematic. The Rodin Divino # Inferno will crack open the Gates as a classically trained visual artist with the finely style and pacing, fresh and inventive. This film of Hell, which are supposed to remain forever crafted and sensual narration of writer and art will steer clear of stuffy, academic documentary shut, just long enough for the public to see and critic Zoé Balthus, and the expert storytelling of devices, instead aiming for a spirit that is understand the master’s Divine Comedy. screenwriter Levy-Kuentz to reveal the secrets of unapologetically contemporary. What a perfect the sculptor’s entire body of work and paint a very fit for an artist whose work and personality were personal portrait of an extraordinary artist and a constantly at odds with conventional academicism remarkable man. and who laid the foundations for Modern Art! Rodin Divino # Inferno has been conceived as This film’s stated goal is to captivate audiences an all-encompassing journey into the heart of this through strong, edgy storytelling, the body extremely sensual work, and ultimately into the language of dance, and the sensual dramatization mind and creative process of its creator. of Rodin’s works through the magic of light and cinematography. | 4 | 5 BRUNO AVEILLAN LES BONS CLIENTS Bruno Aveillan is a contemporary visual artist whose creative work pervades Les Bons Clients is an independent documentary film production company, into different domains of visual expression. Having initially studied painting, his which has just celebrated its 10 years! Eclectic, our catalogue counts some ability to blend this artistry with the most sophisticated visual effects has made 70 documentaries commissioned by Arte, France Télévisions and Canal+, Bruno’s work memorable to viewers worldwide. including social issues, investigation, History and culture documentaries. Our ambition is to be a unique place for creativity where writers and directors 6 | With many award-winning international campaigns to his credit, he is one of the can develop original and popular programs. We pay particular attention to most distinguished sought after directors and photographers across the globe storytelling and visual style, and our emphasis is on ambitious projects with a in the art communication industry. strong international profile. Bruno’s first major recognition came in 1998 with an award-winning spot Les Bons Clients is the producer of many acclaimed documentary films, for Perrier, in which he brought a fresh, fantastical approach to a traditional including several Arts & Culture documentaries such as Mona Lisa’s diary, brand. By 2001, he was directing alongside Martin Scorsese, Wong Kar-Wai the prestigious collection Forgotten Treasures of the Mediterranean region, and Oliver Stone on the high-profile Orange spots for audiences overseas. He for Arte, under the high patronage of Unesco, as well as pop culture docs, but directed the first ever film for Louis Vuitton “Journey’s”, a 90-second spot asking also many international co-productions, such as the investigation on global viewers “Where will life take you?”, which has won more than 14 prestigious surveillance An Eye on You: Citizens Under Surveillance and the memorial international awards. More recently, Swarovski enlisted Aveillan to create an documentary Maestros of the camps, a gripping quest of the music written experimental cinema short movie for their international art exhibitions. in the camps of WWII, both films by Alexandre Valenti, in coproduction with Intuition Films and in partnership with several international broadcasters, film In 2009, the Musée des Arts Décoratifs at the Louvre in Paris had a retrospective funds and funding bodies. of his work within their major exhibition devoted to cinema and advertising. Other international museums, such as the MoMA in New York, had special screenings of his films. Simultaneously, Bruno Aveillan has developed a personal artistic path that includes photography, experimental films and installations. The major reoccurring themes throughout his work centres around the human body, effacement, wanderings and memories. His experimental films and photographs, regularly published and exhibited, are part of prestigious public and private collections around the world. Bruno Aveillan is set to make his feature directorial debut on “Hansel and Gretel: Witch Hunters 2” for Paramount Pictures studio in the US. | 6 | 7 PARTNERS & INTERNATIONAL POTENTIAL | 8 We are producing Rodin divino # inferno on the occasion of Auguste Rodin’s Rodin’s works have largely spread outside of his homeland to enter into a death centenary in 2017, in coproduction with the European broadcaster ARTE realm of collective belonging. The very widespread territories where Rodin’s and RMN – GP (the public cultural institution for French national museums, museums or collections exist – including Japan, Korea, UK and most European under supervision of French Ministry of Culture) and with the support of CNC, countries as well as the US - reflect the international appeal of the project. French National Centre for Cinema. Bruno Aveillan will be working with his creative partners of QUAD Group Arte is committed to making the documentary one of their programming who will also be coproduction partners, bringing their strong reputation and highlights of 2017 for Rodin’s death centenary and RMN-Grand Palais is distinctive visual expertise in digital imagery and special effects. programming the film as a launch pad of the national Rodin Exhibition taking place at Grand Palais Museum in Paris in March 2017. This will notably ensure The production of the film is well underway, with a significant amount of the film receives excellent international exposure. Our objective is to go beyond funding on board from French and European funders. The early selection art lovers and reach out to the general public. The unique aesthetic universe at two prestigious pitching sessions – Sheffield Doc/Fest Meetmarket in the of Bruno Aveillan will create an attractive and timeless work accessible and UK and EBU/European Broadcasting Union – is allowing us to gather further