The man of sand, the films of Thierry Michel

« The man of sand, the films of Thierry Michel » is the third movie from the collection Cinéastes d’aujourd’hui of the Cinémathèque de la Fédération Wallonie-Bruxelles over the most talented directors in Wallonia. Thierry Michel is the author of over 20 films, mainly documentaries, a significant body of work with international scope. From films rooted in social struggles in Wallonia, to the search for Elsewhere, in Morocco and Brazil, in Iran and Africa, including Congo/Zaire, the place that really got under his skin.

Jose Luis Peñafuerte’s portrait plunges us into the heart of the work of this documentary maker who confronts reality, and reveals to us the keenness of his insight. Thierry Michel’s films are direct, committed, on the side of the poor, the oppressed, denouncing dictatorships and the excesses of power. Forty years of the desire to film, reviving our memory, during which Thierry Michel has ceaselessly questioned the complexity of the world and the meaning of our lives.