Jungle

This portrait of several young women living in northeast Paris vigorously pushes aside the clichéd image of the ever-elegant Parisienne. These women are free, loud, and diverse, and their conversations shift effortlessly from sex and STIs to social philosophy.

Dünya, Lila, Héloise, Bonnie and Solveig bristle with confidence and bluster, on the cusp of a new phase in life: “Do I want to go to university or follow my dream in music?” “Shall I stay with my boyfriend?” “Am I at last going to be able to live on my own?”

Director Louise Mootz and her protagonists all grew up in the same arrondissement and were 20 when filming started. Mootz stuck closely to this group of girlfriends over a three-year period. Much like her young heroines, she is unfazed by any subject, so emotional outbursts, sexual encounters, and despair are all part of the picture. The film includes numerous night scenes that immerse the viewer in a Paris we rarely see, a concrete jungle that screams “liberté, egalité, sororité” from the rooftops. Mootz’s debut film won the award for Best Mid-Length Documentary at Visions du Réel.