Pierre and Marie Curie’s work, which led to the discovery of radium and radioactivity, began with a photographic plate that was inexplicably obscured. The greatest discovery of the century was above all the work of a couple of genius researchers, who owed their success to a tenacious will, more than to the paltry means at … Continued
One day, an Indian discovered a mountain of solid silver: Potosi. Lightning and thunder warned him that this wealth would not benefit him or his people, but a stranger who would come later. That stranger was the Spaniard, and since the conquest, the Indians, starving and miserable, have plundered, turned over and excavated this mountain … Continued
This 75-minute film takes stock of French action in Algeria between 1830 and 1962. The history of the country since the Romans is evoked through works of art, followed by the major infrastructure projects undertaken by France: irrigation and dams, agriculture, town planning and the Constantine Plan, culture and education (schools, universities, vocational training), raw … Continued
At low tide, the sea uncovers what the indifferent wave has abandoned. Crystal transparencies everywhere. Here is a puddle, a small space full of riches and moving shapes, where each clump of seaweed conceals a living creature: an anemone, a rock fish, prawns, a crab. In this crystal world, the ferocious law of the jungle … Continued
In Haute-Provence, two young city dwellers enjoy the perfect holiday with a shepherd who knows every rock in the mountains and knows how to be kind and gentle to them. But all it takes is a chance encounter with the mauve clumps of thyme and lavender to reveal to them a tiny world of insects, … Continued
In Madagascar, the spirit of tradition remains alive in the family unit, with its customs and rites, and the oral transmission of legends and sayings. But the Big Island is not neglecting its future by developing modern agricultural and industrial techniques, research and the use of energy resources.
Discovered in 1914, the temple of Angkor, the apotheosis of Khmer art, was restored with its own materials by the French, who were able to recreate the work of geniuses from another time and another race, and give the kingdom of Cambodia a history and a past.
Film shot during the first French polar expedition to Antarctica. The sun triumphs over the long polar night. It was not to be a summer like any other that year. For the first time, it will be witnessed by humans. This is of little concern to the penguins, whose ancestral habits are in no way … Continued
It’s a fascinating game to compare images of the Paris of yesterday with those of the Paris we know today, especially if you prefer the “imagiers” to the painter. The imagiers were the modest and conscientious creators of maps and engravings of Paris. If only a handful of images remain of Paris in the Middle … Continued
A magician and precursor of cinematographic art, Georges Méliès was found in 1928 running a toy shop, all that remained of his once prestigious existence. Before 1914, he made several hundred magical, poetic films whose fresh inspiration and ingenuity still surprise today’s jaded viewer. His wife, his granddaughter, one of his former collaborators, and finally … Continued