Chronicle of a Summer (“Chronique d'un été”), by Jean Rouch and Edgar Morin

Born in 1917, Jean Rouch left France after his studies to work as a public works engineer in Africa. There he fell in love with ethnography and, camera in hand, documented the ethnic rituals and customs of Niger and Mali – The Magicians of Wanzerbe (“Les Magiciens de Wanzerbe”), 1948; The Lion Hunters (“La Chasse au lion à l'arc”), 1965; Sigui Synthesis: The Invention of speech and death (“Sigui synthèse: l'invention de la parole et de la mort”), 1981. His penchant for sociology also led him to make films questioning the societal changes of his time, such as Me, a Black Man (“Moi, un noir”) (1958) or Chronicle of a Summer (1961), co-created with his friend Edgar Morin.

A philosopher and sociologist, Edgar Morin was one of the pioneers of “complex thinking” which combines different disciplines from the hard sciences and human sciences.

Chronicle of a Summer questions the ability of cinema to tell the truth. Through open discussions, the film brings the words of ordinary French people to the screen, without artifice.

It is 1960, the Algerian war is raging and the Fifth Republic is experiencing the first days since the return to power of General de Gaulle. One after another, students, workers, immigrants and former deportees answer a simple question: “How do you deal with life?”. Jean Rouch and Edgar Morin thus immortalise a society in which the roots of the May 68 protest are already spreading.

Chronicle of a Summer is powerful because of the impression of authenticity it radiates. This magic is thanks to Jean Rouch’s talent. Camera in hand, the director walks the street, the beach, knowing how to disappear in order to capture the transience of moments. He uses the latest sound technology, allowing him to synchronize speech and image. Big microphones are replaced by smaller ones which can be hidden, allowing him to immerse himself in the intimacy of the scene.

As Jean Rouch put it, “cinéma-vérité is made of lies [which], by sheer chance, are more true than the truth.”

Upon its release in 1961, Chronicle of a Summer quickly made a lasting impression and won the International Critics prize at Cannes. Later, it would go down in history as the beginning of "direct cinema". With the goal of rescuing cinema from all theatricality, Robert Drew in the United States and Michel Brault in Canada also help create this movement. Chronicle of a Summer will more specifically influence the directors of the New Wave, such as Jean-Luc Godard and François Truffaut.

More broadly, Jean Rouch’s work has launched several African filmmakers such as Safi Faye of Senegal and Moustapha Alassane of the Niger.