Treasure Island - DocPoint 2019

Treasure Island by Guillaume Brac had its world premiere at the Karlovy Vary Film Festival in the middle of the scorching hot summer of 2018.

The documentary follows the summer season of the Île de loisirs recreational park at the outskirts of Paris. Although the film does also feature park administrators and security, immigrant families as well as a retired teacher, the point of view is mostly fixed on the children and youths. There is no lack of initiative or resourcefulness, be it for sneaking into the park for free or charming a summer fling. The park is a communal, public space – only with an entrance fee and fences.

Brac’s humane and subtle documentary avoids overt simplifications or bipolarization. Instead, the cast of characters with their various stories and backgrounds sheds light on the gamut of “ordinary” summer living in late 2010s France.

Tytti Rantanen / Translation: Liina Härkönen