Politikos festival in Rennes: politics and power, between rejection and fascination

Former mayor, former minister, president of regions, deputies, but also actors, directors and journalists, the plateau brought together by Politikos, the first international festival of political film is impressive. For four days at the Couvent des Jacobins in Rennes, nearly 70 personalities, the world of media, culture and politics, will parade to exchange and discuss the exercise of power. But with some forty films and documentaries. Politikos wants to be primarily a film festival.
"Politikos is really for everyone" explains Jean-Michel Djian, director, "Those who are irritated by politics as those who are pbadionate about politics, but beyond this word, it is the cinema and the image that invites us to enter this world. art can carry something you want to summon it. "

"A very serious moment for democracies" according to François Hollande

Former President François Hollande, guest of the festival and who participated in a debate on Thursday, thus warned against the current populist wave "We are in a very serious moment for the democracies where we must be wary of these personalities who at one time embrace the aspirations of a people", Referring to the election of Jair Bolsonaro in Brazil and Donald Trump in the United States. "There must be awareness that France is not immune to this phenomenon, this wave, this movement where characters who want to be in the clear, who want to be in a direct relationship to the people , can reach the supreme responsibilities of the country "continued the former socialist president. "We must never believe that democracy can be irreversible", he added. "Who would have thought that a US billionaire who has never held any public office, any term in Congress can become the president of the United States?" "We must be aware that our institutions do not immunize us against this type of character", he said.

For Jean-Louis Debré, political parties "have nothing more to say"

Former President of the Constitutional Council Jean-Louis Debré he deplored the fact that"today, neither the republican left nor the right embodies a hope for the French". "To prevent the arrival of a providential man, the political parties must have something to say". "Since they have nothing more to say (…) then we turn to a character who comes from nowhere or elsewhere and who will fight a path on the rubble of the traditional parties", concluded Jean-Louis Debré.

Controversy over grants allocated to the event

Politikos thus displays the ambition to to decipher politics by image and those who make it, in a time when it fascinates as much as it repels citizens. But outside the Convent of the Jacobins, Breton authors and directors distribute leaflets to explain their anger at an event, which received 320,000 euros from the communities and to which they were not badociated regrets Marianne Bressy, spokesperson of the collective Politik'off : "We are faced with the question of living together and social mix, when we work in neighborhoods, that is the political and civic work we do and for which we are not recognized, because it's true we made real documentary and real field work it's a little less bling bling than political stars. "

The Region subsidizes, the town hall, no

Called by the badociations and some elected officials, the city hall of Rennes chose it not to subsidize Politikos. A choice that justifies Valérie Faucheux, municipal councilor who explains that"As an elected representative, we know that money is scarce and that it is a matter of benefiting local actors, who are able to build this kind of project. fields, of what we do not want. " For Loïg Chesnais Girad, President of the Brittany Region, who has allocated € 190,000 to the festival, there is no opposition or contradiction: "I think we all have an interest in strengthening all the actors of culture, who make the culture, the film, the documentary in Brittany and besides we have an interest to do it with all the means that we make available. But we also aim to welcome other actors who come to settle their bags here in Brittany. "

Politikos until Sunday, a "Festival Off" Saturday

The films, debates, lectures, readings, and exhibition of the Politikos festival take place until Sunday evening at the Convent of the Jacobins. The Breton badociations are proposing, in parallel, a festival off, "Politik'off", with screenings of their films, in different locations in Rennes and at Parcheminerie on Saturday afternoon.

The report in Rennes by Maylen Villaverde and Vincent Bars

Interviews: Jean-Michel Djian, president of the Politikos festival – Marianne Bressy, director, spokesperson of the Politk'off collective – Valérie Faucheux, Rennes city councilor (Ecologists and citizens group) – Loïg Chesnais-Girard, President of the Brittany Region