In “Nos âmes libres,” Salomée Stévenin turns a personal search for meaning into a documentary shaped by introspection. The film begins with her feeling that she was watching the world rather than taking part in it, a sense of unease that eventually led her to seek answers through the sea.
About 15 years ago, Stévenin encountered a dolphin at an animal park in the Bahamas. The meeting stayed with her, returning in her dreams and contributing to what she describes as an inner collapse. The documentary follows the path of thought that grew from that experience.
Stévenin, an actor and filmmaker and the daughter of actor and director Jean-François Stévenin, builds the film around a carefully written voice-over that moves between spiritual, poetic and political reflection. It is accompanied by travel footage, archival material and interviews with people who have influenced her thinking and commitment.
The film uses a loose editing style and gives music a prominent role, drawing on works by Schubert, Mozart, Tchaikovsky, Max Richter, Shigeru Umebayashi, Nick Cave and Warren Ellis. Images include family archives and underwater sequences of Stévenin swimming among fish, alongside footage gathered around the world.
Sources: Le Monde Culture.