Le Chantier
Jean-Stéphane Bron
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The title Le Chantier means in English Construction Site. The Swiss director Jean-Stéphane Bron has made a captivating film. The focus of the story is the entire period of several years during which the world-famous Paramount’s former but a bit dilapidated movie palace is transformed into the elegant headquarters and cinema and entertainment centre of the French film company Pathé. The chosen architect is the respected and world-famous Italian Renzo Piano and his Workshop.
A new inner courtyard is being hollowed out into the actual building. Its glass and steel materials must be skilfully integrated into the original building and its own material world. When it comes to Renzo Piano Workshop, even trees are also being inserted into the core of the building — a very demanding logistical measure, indeed.
The film is perfectly suited to be shown in the Bio Rex in the Lasipalatsi or Glass Palace in Helsinki. It was for decades the most modern cinema in our capital city of Finland. The cinema has managed to preserve its almost original appearance, which was considered extremely representative at the time of its completion (1936), and which no one has attempted to improve any further. Bio Rex was for a long time the theatre where the premieres of the most important films took place.
Le Chantier is a skilfully filmed and magnificently sound-scaped story of the planning and construction site period. In projects and buildings of this kind, the planning continues even after the construction site has already started. The film also tells how the CEO of that prestigious film company, Jerôme Seydoux, prefers to oversee almost everything related to the new cinemas and their superb elegance as far as the furniture and other design features are concerned. He uses his power in a manner that, of course, increases costs and causes all kinds of confusion in the design team meetings.
In addition to the fact that the film tells the story of the sometimes-overbearing power over even a world-famous and experienced architectural firm, it lets us join the company of all the different people who practically carry out the work in the building aimed at its completion and the elegant opening event. We get to admire the rooftops of Paris with the man operating the crane as well as take part in the short lunch breaks of the people cleaning the construction site. We also get to actually see how various interventions and changes in the plans create tremendous pressure on the eve of the completion of the building: almost everyone has to stretch themselves to the limit so that the renewed cinema palace, with its admittedly exquisite spaces and special features, is ready and the doors can be opened to the public at the appointed time. As part of the film’s narrative, we also get to see other cinemas that the people involved in the construction process want to visit in their free time.
Just like architecture and buildings, filmmaking requires a lot of dedicated effort from a variety of people and professionals. The end credits of films have traditionally and meticulously mentioned all of them.
Le Chantier shows who the actual builders are and what kind of people are involved in the design work leading up to the finished building. It also shows how the client’s own obsessions, luxurious taste, and constant attention to detail tend to overwhelm the world-famous architectural firm’s own, and certainly solid, expertise. This all involves many people, whose nerves are occasionally put to the test.
Le chantier is a slightly different kind of architecture film. We have previously screened a Swedish film about the design and construction of a new exhibition building in Stockholm called Liljevalchs+ in the festival program, in which the making of the exceptionally demanding cast-in-place concrete roof was like a suspense drama.
Le Chantier, on the other hand, offers some truly Parisian excitement and a panorama over all of Paris.
What is Pathé?
Pathé is a European film company that began as a brotherly enterprise. It was founded by Charles Pathé and his brothers in Paris in 1896. The company was then called Société Pathé Frères. In addition to Charles, the company included Émile, Théophile and Jacques. They were exceptionally significant pioneers in the film industry and field.
By the early 20th century, the company had grown into one of the world’s largest film producers and manufacturers of cinema equipment, as well as a major record company. Pathé is primarily active in French-speaking Europe, namely France, Belgium and Switzerland. The company’s symbol is the unofficial symbol of France, the Gallic rooster.
A new inner courtyard is being hollowed out into the actual building. Its glass and steel materials must be skilfully integrated into the original building and its own material world. When it comes to Renzo Piano Workshop, even trees are also being inserted into the core of the building — a very demanding logistical measure, indeed.
The film is perfectly suited to be shown in the Bio Rex in the Lasipalatsi or Glass Palace in Helsinki. It was for decades the most modern cinema in our capital city of Finland. The cinema has managed to preserve its almost original appearance, which was considered extremely representative at the time of its completion (1936), and which no one has attempted to improve any further. Bio Rex was for a long time the theatre where the premieres of the most important films took place.
Le Chantier is a skilfully filmed and magnificently sound-scaped story of the planning and construction site period. In projects and buildings of this kind, the planning continues even after the construction site has already started. The film also tells how the CEO of that prestigious film company, Jerôme Seydoux, prefers to oversee almost everything related to the new cinemas and their superb elegance as far as the furniture and other design features are concerned. He uses his power in a manner that, of course, increases costs and causes all kinds of confusion in the design team meetings.
In addition to the fact that the film tells the story of the sometimes-overbearing power over even a world-famous and experienced architectural firm, it lets us join the company of all the different people who practically carry out the work in the building aimed at its completion and the elegant opening event. We get to admire the rooftops of Paris with the man operating the crane as well as take part in the short lunch breaks of the people cleaning the construction site. We also get to actually see how various interventions and changes in the plans create tremendous pressure on the eve of the completion of the building: almost everyone has to stretch themselves to the limit so that the renewed cinema palace, with its admittedly exquisite spaces and special features, is ready and the doors can be opened to the public at the appointed time. As part of the film’s narrative, we also get to see other cinemas that the people involved in the construction process want to visit in their free time.
Just like architecture and buildings, filmmaking requires a lot of dedicated effort from a variety of people and professionals. The end credits of films have traditionally and meticulously mentioned all of them.
Le Chantier shows who the actual builders are and what kind of people are involved in the design work leading up to the finished building. It also shows how the client’s own obsessions, luxurious taste, and constant attention to detail tend to overwhelm the world-famous architectural firm’s own, and certainly solid, expertise. This all involves many people, whose nerves are occasionally put to the test.
Le chantier is a slightly different kind of architecture film. We have previously screened a Swedish film about the design and construction of a new exhibition building in Stockholm called Liljevalchs+ in the festival program, in which the making of the exceptionally demanding cast-in-place concrete roof was like a suspense drama.
Le Chantier, on the other hand, offers some truly Parisian excitement and a panorama over all of Paris.
What is Pathé?
Pathé is a European film company that began as a brotherly enterprise. It was founded by Charles Pathé and his brothers in Paris in 1896. The company was then called Société Pathé Frères. In addition to Charles, the company included Émile, Théophile and Jacques. They were exceptionally significant pioneers in the film industry and field.
By the early 20th century, the company had grown into one of the world’s largest film producers and manufacturers of cinema equipment, as well as a major record company. Pathé is primarily active in French-speaking Europe, namely France, Belgium and Switzerland. The company’s symbol is the unofficial symbol of France, the Gallic rooster.
Le Chantier 2025. Jean-Stéphane Bron. 94 min.
Jean-Stéphane Bron
Jean-Stéphane Bron is a multi-award-winning Swiss filmmaker and screenwriter, also known for his political documentaries.
He has graduated from the École Cantonale d'Art de Lausanne (ECAL) in 1995. He has since built a career focused on exploring contemporary societal issues, including the crisis of democracy, economic upheaval, the rise of populism, and the power of techno-science.
His recent film Le Chantier had its premiere in 2025. Even though it tells the story of a building site for Pathé, an important French film company, it also deals with the work of a world-famous architect and his collaborators, designers, and all the different kinds of people and professions needed to modify, restore and partly reconstruct and complete a beautiful but slightly dated former Paramount Cinema Palace into something completely new.
He has graduated from the École Cantonale d'Art de Lausanne (ECAL) in 1995. He has since built a career focused on exploring contemporary societal issues, including the crisis of democracy, economic upheaval, the rise of populism, and the power of techno-science.
His recent film Le Chantier had its premiere in 2025. Even though it tells the story of a building site for Pathé, an important French film company, it also deals with the work of a world-famous architect and his collaborators, designers, and all the different kinds of people and professions needed to modify, restore and partly reconstruct and complete a beautiful but slightly dated former Paramount Cinema Palace into something completely new.
