Révolution silencieuse

Lila Ribi
Switzerland | 2016 | 92 min
World premiere
Language : French
Subtitle : English

Cédric is a farmer. Lila Ribi films him throughout the year in which he decides to radically change his working methods, abandoning conventional agriculture in order to embark on an experiment in integrated cereal grow- ing (conversion to organic agriculture, choice of wheat varieties adapted to the land and to the requirements of local traditional bakers, etc.).The director’s perspective as she follows and supports the farmer’s approach is one of benevolence and solidarity, a desire to relay these small “revolutions” that are passing undetected. But the film comes into its own in the dramatisation of this adventure, when she films moments of doubt and edits scenes of conflict. Like any change, Cédric’s experiment is difficult, he takes risks to defend his beliefs and his project has to face up to reality. There are moments of crisis and tension. Then Cédric’s opti- mism and faith, which seemed iron-clad, crack and his struggle appears. Cédric has uncertainties and contradictions. At the end of the film, he will have completed and achieved something but it will only be a stage for him, as it is for the future world.
Madeline Robert