Your film consists of footage shot between 2005 and 2007. Could you tell us more about the context in which this footage was shot?
I started filming in 2005 with a mini-DV camera without any particular goal—neither financial nor career-related—driven simply by the pleasure of filming, free from any self-censorship or pressure to create a product to sell. When I look back on that time 16 or 17 years ago, I’m still amazed by how rapidly things have changed in such a short period, due to the development of digital tools that have affected not only how we build our communications and relationships, but also our worldviews. I’m also surprised by the naivety with which we approached politics and mocked political issues, without realizing the consequences this negligence would lead to.
Why revisit these images and edit them now?
In 2015, I stumbled upon dozens of these tapes by accident and watched them as if none of it had ever happened to me. I had completely forgotten those events from when I was 19 or 20, and I was struck by the absolute freedom and love that emanated from those images. It’s unimaginable in today’s atmosphere of self-control, where everything is recorded and immediately judged. After hesitating for a while, I finally decided to make a film out of these accidental images, as a counterpoint to the current ideology of polished images, sterile content, and conformity to what is considered acceptable. And precisely because Questionnaire wasn’t even supposed to be a film to begin with.
Interview by Nathan Letoré
