LOST AND FOUND IN PARIS - Courtesy of Make Studio
All day long, people come to the reception desk at the Lost and Found Office in Paris. It's a never-ending flow. They want to retrieve their belongings and they're in a hurry. But finding what has been lost is not an easy task. It requires time. The time it takes to wait for their turn and fill out paperwork. Time to explain what has been lost. Time to find the item in the warehouse and send it back up the freight elevator. LOST AND FOUND IN PARIS takes place entirely inside this fascinating space, and takes the time to tell the stories of both those at a loss and those in charge of returning the objects we carry, cherish and misplace.
LOST AND FOUND IN PARIS screened in-person at Salem Film Fest and is available for streaming anywhere in the United States during the virtual portion of our festival which runs through Sunday, April 3.
Salem Film Fest is happy to be collaborating with Marblehead High School on some of this year’s Blog Posts and we are grateful to MHS Teacher Connor Ryan who has been working with his students in exploring this year’s festival.
This interview with Director Laura Lamanda was written by Zoe, Summer, Caitlin, Cate, Arielle, Martha, Madeleine, Yasen, Celine, Lilly, Lia, Lauren, Griffen, and Griffin -- Marblehead High School's grandest G block AP Language and Composition class.
Laura Lamanda
Marblehead High School: What inspired the film?
Laura Lamanda: Several summers ago everything was apparently going smoothly, when suddenly my things started getting lost. Everything: keys, books, identity cards, papers. My days were littered with small moments of mourning. And then, amid this uninterrupted stream of losses, the most serious incident occurred: I lost my laptop. When I found it again, several weeks later, at the Lost and Found Service, I was awestruck: strangers who owed me nothing had looked after me.
MHS: How did you choose your subjects?
LL: At the Lost and Found Service, the social mix of users is obvious. The loss concerns everyone, it does not discriminate. At the service counters, users follow one another at a steady pace and some of them only stay a few minutes before disappearing. This constraint forced me to be quick, to make choices very quickly.
LOST AND FOUND IN PARIS - Courtesy of Make Studio
MHS: Once chosen, how did you approach your subjects?
LL: I approached the users when I could read a strong emotion on their faces, when I had the feeling that something crucial was happening for them. My eyes were drawn to an almost solemn concentration when filling out the loss declaration, to agitated movements, or to strong apprehension during the exchanges with the agents.
MHS: Could you please discuss your choices regarding sound for this project?
LL: Since the Lost and Found is a very noisy place, we had to find an appropriate set up/technical solution. I wanted close and intimate voices, I wanted to isolate the noise of the objects handled by the agents of the service or by their owners. With Amaury Arboun, the sound engineer, we did some very precise location scouting and sound tests. In addition to the boom, we placed several microphones in the department in places where I knew we would be filming.
LOST AND FOUND IN PARIS - Courtesy of Make Studio
MHS: How did you create your voiceovers?
LL: When possible, we recorded the voice-overs in a small unoccupied room in the ward. I tried to create a quiet, protected environment, a cocoon in which the people being filmed could safely confide their words and vulnerability to us. With Marta Billingsley, the sound editor, we worked a lot on the sound rhythm of the film. Realistic soundscapes alternate with more muted and rarefied ones, such as during the voice-overs or during certain moments of fluctuation.
LOST AND FOUND IN PARIS - Courtesy of Make Studio
MHS: The film spends a lot of time focusing on the specifics of the Lost and Found Office. What was so intriguing about this location?
LL: When I went to find my computer, I discovered Rue des Morillons, this place devoted to loss. I loved spending time in the hall with its big windows and sturdy old furniture, where a crowd of bereft losers had wound up before me. I no longer wanted to leave this place. I wanted to stay there, surrounded by the others and their stories. I was intent on filming them.
LOST AND FOUND IN PARIS streams at Salem Film Fest Monday, March 28 - Sunday, April 3. Purchase tickets to the film here.
