La digue
Directed by
Fifty years ago, a huge industrial site comprising steel and petrochemical factories was built on the western side of the port of Dunkerque. To allow the oil tankers to dock close to the refineries, a 7-km-long sea wall was constructed: the Break sea wall that borders a beautiful beach where, despite the dangers, numerous bathers come in the summer. The sea wall draws a line between what we consider being part of nature (beach, sea, waves) and the overwhelming industrial dimensions of the refineries and factories. Derived from a collective project, the film looks into a man-made world, providing insights into what a consumerist lifestyle entails and the impact it has on our lives.
My incidental encounter with the Break sea wall was a revelation: the site was an ideal stage for mounting a global reflection on our modern lifestyle. Starting from that situation, I tried to understand the close ties between industry and our daily life. The sea wall, like a promontory, provides an observation point from which the beach and the bathers and the factories on the other side of the basin can be watched. I wanted to make a documentary using different “actors” who live, work, and visit the area. I tried to understand the concerns of each of them.
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