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The Mechanics of Fluids
Documentary essay (film and video installation). France/Spain, 2022, 38 min, color.
In 2018, an incel (i.e., an involuntary celibate) posts a suicide note on the Reddit platform with the title “America is responsible for my death.” The Mechanics of fluids is an attempt to find answers to his words. A virtual drift on the Internet in search of his digital traces that ends up being an inner journey between two connected solitudes.
Download the presskit (in French)
Production: L’Heure d’été (Lucas Le Postec, Thibault de Gantes et Ninon Chapuis) & After Social Networks
Script and direction: Gala Hernández López
Editing: Alberto Dexeus and Gala Hernández López with the collaboration of Aleix Fernández
Animation: Claudia Martín
Sound design: Mélia Roger
Grading: Aurore Toulon
Mixing: Charli Masson
Graphics and poster: Esteve Padilla (131gd)
Project supported by the Doctoral School Science, Aesthetics and Technologies of Art (EDESTA, University of Paris 8), the EUR ArTeC and the CNC – DICRéAM.
Streamed on Tënk, Mediapart, Universciné and Filmin.
FESTIVALS & SCREENINGS:
- FIFIB Festival International du Film Indépendant de Bordeaux – Contrebande Competition, France, October 2022
- DOK Leipzig International Film Festival – International Short Film Competition, Germany, October 2022
- SEMINCI Valladolid – Tiempo de Historia Competition, Spain, October 2022
- Ciné-rencontre at Cinémas Les Lobis, Blois, France, November 2022
- Kasseler DOKfest, Germany, November 2022
- Alcine Festival de Cine de Alcalá de Henares – National Short films Competition, Spain, November 2022
- Beijing International Short Film Festival, China, November 2022
- Doc. Berlin Film Festival, Germany, December 2022
- Stuttgarter FilmWinter Festival for Expanded Media, Germany, January 2023
- Clermont-Ferrand Short Film Festival, France, January 2023
- Big Sky Documentary Film Festival, USA, February 2023
- Brussels Independent Film Festival, Belgium, February 2023
- IBAFF, Spain, February 2023
- Festival La première fois, France, March 2023
- École Normale Supérieure (ENS), France, March 2023
- Festival Vidéoformes, France, March 2023
- Cinéma du Réel, France, March 2023
- University of Bournemouth, UK, March 2023
- Festival Internacional de cine de Cartagena de Indias FICCI, Colombia, March 2023
- Doc.London Documentary Film Festival, UK, March 2023
- Filmoteca Regional, Murcia, Spain, March 2023
- D’A Film Festival, Spain, March 2023
- Athens Film and Video Festival, USA, April 2023
- Il Varco Short Film Festival, Italy, April 2023
- Ghent Viewpoint Documentary Film Festival, Belgium, April 2023
- Filmoteca de Cartagena, Spain, April 2023
- IndieLisboa, International Competition, Portugal, April-May 2023
- Film Forum, HBK Braunschweig, Germany, May 2023
- Gran Lux, Saint-Etienne, France, May 2023
- Doc. Sydney, Australia, May 2023
- Dunhuang Animation Festival, China, May 2023
- Athens Digital Arts
Festival, Greece, May 2023 - NECS Conference, Kunstnereshus Oslo, Norway, June 2023
- Olhar de Cinema, Brazil, June 2023
- Festival Internacional de Cine de Derechos Humanos, Argentina, June 2023
- French Society of Information and Communication Sciences Annual Conference, France, June 2023
- Festival du Film court en plein air de Grenoble, France, June 2023
- International Festival Signes de Nuit Bangkok, Thailand, July 2023
- Visiones del Futuro, Argentina, August 2023
- Concorto Film Festival, Italy, August 2023
- Festival de Cine Experimental de Bogotá, Colombia, August 2023
- Flickers Rhode Island International Film Festival, USA, August 2023
- Venice Film Week, Italy, August 2023
- Visible Evidence Conference, Italy, September 2023
- Arts Santa Mònica, Spain, September 2023
- Tirana Film Festival, Albania, September 2023
- Busan International Video Art Festival, South Korea, September 2023
- Shorts México, Mexico, September 2023
- Ducato Prize Exhibition, Italy, September 2023
- La Vivalità! Cinéma documentaire, France, September 2023
- Equinoxio Film Festival, Colombia, October 2023
- Tisff – Thess International Short film Festival, Greece, October 2023
- EDOC, Ecuador, October 2023
- B3 Festival of the moving image, Germany, October 2023
- ASUFICC Festival Internacional de Cine Contemporáneo de Asunción, Paraguay, October 2023
- ULTRACinema, Mexico, October 2023
- Lima Alterna, Peru, October 2023
- Amsterdam Independent Film Festival, Netherlands, October 2023
- Cineteca Madrid, Spain, October 2023
- Scène Nationale de Saint-Nazaire, France, October 2023
- Viva Villà! La Gaîté Lyrique, France, October 2023
- GRRL HAUS Berlin, Germany, October 2023
- International Festival Signs of Night Berlin, Germany, November 2023
- Escales Documentaires, France, November 2023
- Aux écrans du réel, France, November 2023
- Aesthetica Short Film Festival, UK, November 2023
- Rencontres ArTeC, Maison des Métallos, France, November 2023
- Centro Cultural de España en México, Mexico, November 2023
- MuMaBox, MuMa Le Havre, France, November 2023
- FIFAM Amiens Film Festival, France, November 2023
- Spectacle Theater Brooklyn, USA, November 2023
- Festival RIZOMA, Spain, November 2023
- CICA Museum Perspectives 2024 Exhibition, South Korea, Jan-Feb 2024
- Ciné Club Image et Parole, Le Grand Action, February 2024
- We Art Open Worldwide, No Title Gallery, Venice, Italy, February 2024
- Doc.Coimbra, Portugal, March 2024
- Ciné Club Tonnerre, Majestic Bastille, March 2024
- Aesthetica Art Prize Exhibition, York Art Gallery, Feb-April 2024
- Punto de Vista – Festival International de Cine Documental de Navarra, Spain, March 2024
- La Casa Encendida, Spain, March 2024
- Tabakalera, Spain, May 2024
- Festival Mucho Más Mayo, Spain, May 2024
- Winnipeg Underground Film Festival, Canada, May 2024
- Muestra Internacional Documental de Bogotá, MIDBO, Colombia, November 2024
AWARDS:
- Grand Prix of the Contrebande Competition – FIFIB
- Best Short Film Director of all Competitions by France Télévisions – FIFIB
- Best Short Film of the Contrebande Competition by BrefCinema – FIFIB
- Best Short Film of the Documentary Competition – SEMINCI
- Best Experimental Documentary – Doc. Berlin
- Expanded Media – Network Culture Award – Stuttgarter Filmwinter
- Best Documentary Short Film – Brussels Independent Film Festival
- Experimental Work Award 2023 – La Scam
- Best Film of the Un Impulso Colectivo competition – D’A Film Festival Barcelona
- Best Essay Film – Ghent Viewpoint Documentary Film Festival
- Best Documentary Award – IndieLisboa
- Best Short Documentary Film – Doc. Sydney
- Best Short Film – FICDH Argentina
- Finalist of the Ducato Contemporary Art Prize – Academy Category, Italy
- Special Mention – Signs Award, Festival Signs of Night, Thailand
- Best International Documentary – Festival Equinoxio, Colombia
- Special Mention of the Jury – International Documentary Competition – Shorts Mexico, Mexico
- Best Documentary Short Film – Amsterdam Independent Film Festival
- Special Mention of the Young Award (Prix des Jeunes) – Escales Documentaires
- Aesthetica Art Prize 2024 – Emerging Artist category, UK
- César of the Best Documentary Short Film 2024
PRESS & INTERVIEWS:
- El País
- El País
- El País (video)
- ABC Cultural
- El Mundo
- Franco Bifo Berardi on E-flux (Eng)
- Franco Bifo Berardi on Diario Red (Esp)
- Franco Bifo Berardi on Substack (It)
- Vogue
- Vanity Fair
- El Diario.es
- El Periodico de Catalunya
- El Periódico
- El Confidencial
- Infobae – Agencia EFE
- La Razón
- Médiapart
- Télérama
- Format court
- Docs & Talks (podcast)
- Ciberlocutorio (podcast)
- Punto de Vista (video)
- Radio 3
- Radio 3
- Cadena Ser
- El intermedio (La Sexta)
- Culturas 2 (La 2 de RTVE)
- Filmtopia
- Makma
- La Verdad
- The Film Verdict
- Trois couleurs (papier)
- Trois couleurs (entretien en ligne)
- Sight and sound magazine (2022)
- Sight and sound magazine (2023)
- Mouvement
- Le Film Français
- Débordements
- Caligari
- Arobase
- AOC.media
- Bref Cinéma
- Maze
- La brasserie du court
- La Marea
- El antepenúltimo mohicano
- Cine con Ñ
- 35 Milímetros
- Interview – La Verdad
- La verdad
- Los Importantes – La Opinión de Murcia
- Interview Onda Regional – Plaza Pública
- Interview Onda Regional – El Rompeolas
- Le film court au FIFIB – Podcast
- El diario
- Top 5 of the Best Short Films of 2022 – Format Court
- Podcast – Filmwinter (in german)
