Described as emotionally rich, gorgeously hand-painted and visually compelling after premiering at the Cannes, this debut feature by Clichy tells the story of a young boy in the French countryside. Constantly confronted with contradictions, the protagonist soon discovers the duality of the world, and one of the most touching cinematic works of the year unfolds on screen.

Eleven-year-old Christophe spends his days on his father’s farm in the French countryside. The middle child, he is gifted with a fiery personality and a vivid imagination. One day, he suddenly begins to collapse and slump to one side, nearly causing a tractor accident. The episodes recur at school and around the dinner table. The doctor offers a solution: Christophe’s spine must be supported by an iron corset. Forced to change his life completely, Christophe discovers a new passion for music, falls in love, and finds a new friend in the local organ player. Can the boy restore balance to a world that seems to have slipped out of alignment?  

Screened in the Un Certain Regard section, at Annecy and elsewhere, this hand-drawn 2D animation is one of the year’s landmark cinematic events. Unexpectedly, French director Clichy’s animated feature echoes the motifs of Edward Scissorhands (1990): a young boy who, due to his health condition, becomes different from his peers and must learn to navigate life anew. Through the film’s central symbol — the corrective corset — the director raises questions about the future of rural children, not only in France but around the world: is their future as secure and filled with equal opportunities as that of their urban counterparts? While deeply personal for the director, with the main character voiced by his own son, the film leaves ample space for philosophical questions, emotionally charged moments and the profound experience of empathising with another person so deeply that you come to truly know them.