In 1983 French President François Mitterrand decided to launch an international architectural competition for the flagship project of his mandate: The Great Arch of Defense, aligned with the Louvre and the Arc de Triomphe. Against all odds, Otto von Spreckelsen, a Danish architect, wins the competition. Overnight, this 53-year-old man, unknown in France, arrives in Paris where he is propelled at the helm of this monumental project. While the architect intends to build the Great Arch exactly as he envisioned, his ideas quickly clash with realistic constraints and the vicissitudes of politics.
Curators message for the opening film:
Our festival has hit its 18th year, and we’re embracing the bold, daring energy that comes with it. Breaking tradition, we are opening this year’s event with a feature film. This choice was inspired by a remarkable piece of cinema that portrays the historical reality behind the Grande Arche de la Défense in Paris, a unique architectural project born from a French-Danish collaboration. The film’s scenes will bring a smile to your face, yet they remain bittersweet and profoundly familiar to any practicing architect.
