Delphine Cousin

In this animated miniature a drawing gradually comes to life before our eyes, telling a story not only of a wild boar on the run, but also of the ways in which people occupy the places that used to belong to nature. Artist-animator Nicolas Piret has an incredible eye for detail and uses only a single sheet of paper to tell this story. With this impressively meticulous approach, he deploys a playful form of storytelling.

He is a magician. She is a firefighter. Isolating themselves from the chaos of a world in turmoil, the two lovers live in a crane basket high in the sky, where they go about their daily business. Their challenge is to keep their heads, here up above it all, while everything is falling apart down below. But when reality calls – when fires need quenching and people need entertaining – how can they best make themselves useful in a world gone off the rails?

Set in an old fishing village where the sea has vanished and drought has driven most men away, two children—Boris and Toumbil—cling to each other through their strong friendship amid desolation. With parents leaving for better prospects, the boys transform stranded boats into their playground.