Image par Image

The last day of the trip I was totally and utterly wrecked! But it was great !
As part of Image par Image the Val D'oise animation festival we showed the film in the suburbs of Paris.
The kids that came (from local schools) are from a very depressed area of Paris and usually would not get to the cinema much. They were such a fantastic audience, laughing at every joke, jumping at every shock. Very attentive and excitable! No parents at these screenings so the energy was different again.
It was great to answer there questions, one chain of questions made me laugh -
"Is it a real Book?" Yes (gasps)
"Is it a real place ?" Yes ( oohhs)
" Is it a real film?" (laughs!)

Anyway their questions and observations were really honest and informative and it was good to see they engaged and "got" the film even with no frame of reference for the subject matter etcetera. They just bought into the story of Brendan and thats as it should be.

My translator was the very nice Elisabeth Geary who spotted my Kilkenny colours on my luggage right away and realized we were both Kilkenny cats. It was nice on the last day to have someone with the same accent to chat with! She was a great help translating for me during the Q+As afterward the screenings and at the opening film that night.

That night we had the Opening night screening , more for teachers , adults and cinema owners.
We had slightly more cerebral questions then!

Yves and all his team deserve big props for the work they do with this festival, making unusual and beautiful films available and accessible to kids who wouldn't usually find them, also giving the films a chance to be discovered by showing them for months after they have finished their commercial run.
I stayed in a very pretty little B+B in Auvers near where Van Gogh is buried. I will definitely return I can take time to appreciate it better!

Merci Beaucoup toute le monde!
J'espère que chacun en France aime le film !