Tempo Documentary Festival opened with ‘Man With Pigeons’, a layered and powerful short film.
For the first time in the festival’s history, a short film, Man With Pigeons, served as opening title for Sweden’s Tempo Documentary Festival, running on March 8-14, 2021.
Since its inception in 1998, the Tempo Documentary Festival has grown into Sweden’s premier showcase for documentaries, featuring a short film as its inaugural title. The 2021 edition of the festival, running from March 8th to March 14th, offers audiences in Sweden the opportunity to explore its program online.
Directed by Swedish filmmaker Lina Maria Mannheimer, best known for her work on “Mating” (featured at CPH:DOX, Göteborg Film Festival, FIPADOC) in 2019, “Man with Pigeons” is a poignant 14-minute film exploring themes of tenderness, disgust, and devotion against the backdrop of Paris, France.
The film follows an elderly man, seemingly a social outcast, navigating the Beaubourg District of Paris. While the iconic Pompidou Center typically draws attention with its vibrant, unconventional architecture, the director directs our focus downward to a man in grey, caring for the pigeons in the area. It’s an unusual sight, as pigeons are often regarded with disdain, yet this man tends to them with remarkable tenderness, even taking injured birds to the vet in the hopes of restoring their ability to fly. The parallel between the despised pigeons and the overlooked man in grey is hard to ignore; both are cared for by few, yet embody beauty amidst disregard.
What begins as a story of a solitary man attending to despised creatures transforms into a cinematic spectacle. In a striking scene, thousands of pigeons gather around the man on the esplanade of the Pompidou Center, creating a vibrant and raucous display that captures the attention of passersby. Despite the chaos, the man continues his task diligently, rebuffing onlookers who encroach too closely.
The film then cleverly shifts perspectives, incorporating footage from onlookers’ phones, allowing us to see the man through their eyes. As residents complain about the mess and noise, and police intervene to halt his activities, the film delves into the breakdown of social dialogue and the harsh realities of societal marginalization. This powerful sequence highlights the erosion of empathy and understanding in contemporary society, offering a searing indictment of social injustice.
“Man With Pigeons” is competing for the Tempo Short Award, a prestigious accolade accompanied by a prize of SEK 25,000, in the festival’s short documentary competition section. The film’s bold exploration of complex social issues and its skillful storytelling make it a fitting choice for opening the 2021 edition of the Tempo Documentary Festival.
