Following up his epic 330-minute Carlos is no easy feat, but we couldn’t be more excited for the next feature from France’s Olivier Assayas. Premiering this morning in Venice was Something in the Air, his early ’70s-set feature that follows a group of kids who join in political protests and social revolt in Europe. The first clip has been revealed, which show the gang diving right into the trenches as they battle police on the streets. Check it out below for the coming-of-age film starring Clément Métayer, Lola Créton and Félix Armand, as well as a statement from Assayas himself regarding the feature.
Director’s statement:
I don’t really believe in autobiography at the cinema. One always writes about recent and distant memories that are more or less distorted and more or less idealised. This is particularly the case when talking about adolescence, an age when our strongest images are etched almost unbeknownst to us. Instead I believe in youth as a source of inspiration, as an intimate truth that we should constantly measure ourselves against. I grew up during the 1970s. I didn’t choose them and I am returning to them. This violent, confused and contradictory period, overshadowed by the events of May 1968, continues to be the object of misunderstandings. I experienced those years and I am their worst witness, my face to the ground, a tributary of an irreparably falsified perspective. But perhaps that is not the worst point of view for understanding the chaos of those years…
Synopsis:
Paris in the early 70′s. Gilles, a young high school student, is taken in by the political and creative turmoil of the times. Much like his friends, he is torn between his radical commitment and his personal ambitions. Through romantic encounters and artistic discoveries, Gilles and his friends’ journeys take them to Italy and then London. Further down the line, they will have to make definitive choices in order to find their place in these turbulent times.
Something in the Air will also show at TIFF and NYFF before IFC Films releases in the US.