Rated 4.4 out of 5: After 8 years of my courgette life, this director is still causing a sensation!

Winner of numerous awards such as the Crystal for Feature Film, the César for Best Animated Film and the Lumere Prize for Ma vie de Courgette, Swiss director Claude Barras returns to Annecy this year with his second competition project: Savages.

At this very special session on Wednesday, June 12th, Claude Barras came along with the screenwriter and other members of his team to share his brand new animated feature film.

“I wish you a wonderful trip to the forest of Borneo in the company of Keria, Oshi and Selai”– he declares, excited by the cheerful reception of the community. Its screenwriter, Catherine Paley, adds: “I am very excited to be here in front of you, as this is my first collaboration on an animated film, I hope you will enjoy watching this film as much.

Immersed in a Southeast Asian island, we follow the adventures of young Keria, her cousin Selai and the little orangutan Oshi, who fight against all the dangers of the rainforest in the hope of protecting it from logging companies who want to destroy it and plant plantations.

An ode to nature and nomadic peoples that moves as much as it makes people laugh is enhanced by its director’s unique stop-motion animation. In terms of sound, we find the indispensable Benoît Poelvoorde, Letitia Dosch and Michel Vuillérmoz, but above all the talented Babette de Coster and Martin Verset in the main roles.

The feature film, which, like Ma vie de Courgette, aroused the genuine enthusiasm of the audience, which gave it a standing ovation for more than seven minutes, is highlighted by the end credits with the song “Tous the SOS cries” by Daniel Balavoin.

After screenings at the 2024 Cannes Film Festival and the Annecy International Animated Film Festival, Sauvages, distributed by Haut et Court, will be released in French cinemas on October 16.