This project has been considered in the district of 'Les Aubiers' into the city of Bordeaux. It has been made in collaboration with social workers, local organisations and inhabitants. 

Les Aubiers can be seen from far. This estate is located north of the historic centre of Bordeaux. The construction of this large complex dates from the early seventies. It represents a set of 17 floors of which one can contemplate the entanglement. Built 50 years ago, it is home to more than 4,000 residents.

Almost everyone passes through the hall under the buildings leading to the heart of the district, we greet each other on the countless stairs, at the foot of the towers… Today, the dilapidation is felt in all the buildings connected by platforms. This place carries an inspiring aesthetic.

There are stories that only find their meaning in the identity of the place where the idea of the project arises. The estate of Les Aubiers in Bordeaux resonates like the ideal labyrinth, the incredible opportunity to film spaces disembodied by human presence and yet inhabited.

I also stick to this idea of making a road movie on foot that imposes the rhythm of the body to the story. A stroll in the estate which gives the pulse to deploy images of this simple story. An organic story made in the breath, in the heartbeat of the one who lives it.

To work on the image of this woman who runs, it’s showing the contrasts of the emotions that run through her to support her effort. She’s not a marathoner, she challenges her endurance, she runs to breathe, to forget, to get lost and then to find herself again.

You have to enter this air bubble and run with it. By choosing this repetitive activity, I leave a lot of room for the other side of this story. The possibility for the witness to enter her mind. We can then invent her thoughts which move in parallel, which follow or precede her. We build her story made of dreams and hypothesis. We pin mental ideas down to her strides, we sew from scratch the life she needs.

And around the corner she dances. She talks to herself. Shift of point of view… You never take your eyes off her. Change of perspective... She fascinates you. She really fascinates you. But have you stopped breathing? You just noticed that you have a taste of metal in your mouth. You find her at the top of a tower. She dances with emptiness, she dances with the wind and the drone captures her vertigo.

Valérie Rivière has first trained in classical dance and turned later to contemporary dance.

From her first training, she has kept a disposition for excellence. During the time she spent studying in Brussels, at Mudra, she developed an open-mindedness that favours the use of other artistic forms.

She began studying dance at the Conservatoire National de Région de Bordeaux between 1974 and 1978. Then, she went to the School of Princess Grace at Monte-Carlo under the direction of Marika Besobrasova and finally entered Mudra Brussel, school of Maurice Béjart, to become a professional performer. While training in Belgium, she discovered a deep attachment to choreography and a strong interest in other artistic disciplines.

Back in France in 1987, she founded Paul les Oiseaux with Olivier Clémentz.

During the four years following the creation of the company, they both focused their work on experimenting and learned to deconstruct and rebuild a new language that has allowed them to acquire a distinctive artistic identity. In 1992, Valérie Rivière became the only choreographer of the company.

Since then, she has directed twenty five productions, every one of them exploring a different visual universe.

More information :

http://www.paullesoiseaux.com/compagny.html

Filmmaker