Nina Defontaine – Clémente (direction)

The portrait of Monique (my grandmother) as i accompany her in the great sorting of her objects (her ghosts) at her family house (Clémente).

ninadefontaine@gmail.com
https://cargocollective.com/ninaphotographies/cinematographie

Diploma project (2020) by Nina Defontaine

Know-how: Documentary

Documentary / 30mn

Synopsis

Un portrait de ma grand-mère, Monique, 81 ans, qui tente de se détacher des présences de sa maison, Clémente. En triant, elle s’interroge: pourquoi garder ? A travers ces apparitions, elle se raconte au fil des évènements qui ont construit ses idées à propos de la transmission familiale, de la construction du genre et de la liberté. La découverte des films d’archives de ma grand-mère me permet d’explorer les regards filmiques des femmes de ma famille et de partir à la recherche de ce qui façonne leur vie à l’échelle la plus intime.

Director's statement

After discovering my grandmother’s home movies I sought to explore the filmic outlook of the women in my family and find out what shaped their lives on the most intimate scale.

I assisted Monique as she began sorting out her whole life, her objects as well as her memories. Images of the past blended with those of her present daily life as I filmed in 16mm what I hoped to keep from her. The film anchors the presences that flow from my grandmother to her world. Together, we address family transmission, gender constructs and motherhood.

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