Strange Birds

Mavie, 27, freshly arrived in Paris from her native Tours, is sleeping on the couch of a childhood friend and dreaming of being a writer. An ad in a café leads her to a job in the dusty-but-charming bookshop of 76-year-old Georges. A special relationship unfolds between these two lonely souls.

Elise Girard presents a bitter-sweet romantic comedy with deadpan humor, absurdities and delightful twists. Cinematographer Renato Berta beautifully captures the film’s settings; its cafés and the Latin Quarter, where “strange birds”, seagulls, can suddenly fall from clear skies.

Filmography: Belleville-Tokyo (2011).