Self(less) Portrait

In an age of social media, when the boundaries between private and public are constantly being redrawn, 50 people share some of their most intimate experiences and thoughts on camera. Self(less) Portrait by Danic Champoux (Mom and Me, Sessions) offers a complex patchwork of intertwining themes, ultimately reflecting a collective spirit we can all identify with. Taken as a whole, these confessions—sometimes sombre, sometimes comical—compose a rich but disjointed plotline, a human mosaic that slowly takes shape in front of our very eyes, telling a story: our story. Relationships, the search for identity, family violence, depression, suicide, sexuality, mental illness, aliens, religion and death: all these themes come and go on screen like an inexhaustible chain of life. Thanks to the unique voice of each participant, the filmmaker is able to construct a self-reflective ensemble film that vibrates like a symphony dedicated to the human condition. With its intriguing title and idiosyncratic editing style, the film reveals as much about others as it does about the filmmaker himself: an author fascinated by the preciousness of life. Self(less) Portrait is an atypical, free-form work that breathes new life into the documentary genre, serving as a compendium of raw emotions.