ALONE IN PARIS
Haunting Photoshopping Takes You There
Alone in Paris, directed by Mathieu Stern, envisions Paris without people. A traveler comes to Paris for vacation and receives a phone call from her sister saying she’s unable to make the trip. This seemingly sad news becomes a rehabilitating experience for the protagonist, who journeys through the streets of Paris alone. In Stern’s short, Paris has no people, meaning there isn’t anyone else walking the streets.
From the Arc de Triomphe and the Louvre, the traveler gets caught up in the wonders of the city. The situation also enhances her sense of connectivity to the environment. The whole experience is eerie because of the isolation but reveals a sensation of wonder she feels while sightseeing. The traveler takes pictures and smiles as she makes her way through the city. In the early 19th century sense, Stern’s protagonist traveler becomes the perfect flaneur, wandering through the urban environment to build a new identity. Stern’s quiet score and time-lapse shots create space where the emptiness of the city shows.
The film stars Kristiana Roemer and the music is from David Adu-Appeagyei. Abdu-Appeagyei’s score creates an eerie but enthusiastic atmosphere, resembling the Twilight Zone or other dystopian projects like Ex Machina. It also gives us a sense of the main character’s mood as she wanders around. He is a talented composer and deserves recognition. Moreover, Roemer offers us a calm, stellar performance that deviates from nuanced emotion to powerfully stern glances, all to underscore her enchantment with Paris.
PROVOKR loves this video and at 3 minutes, it’s brief but delightful to watch. Though it was made before the COVID-19 pandemic, the video resembles what Paris might be like right now. You can find out more about the artists involved in the links listed on its YouTube video. Check out more of Mathieu Stern’s work on his channel and watch Alone in Paris, right here on PROVOKR.
