Laure & Igor Marconnet

Saint Martin en Vercors (Drôme)

Igor, Prince of Shepherds, and Laure, Pastourelle of Golden Fleeces, lead their sheep into the Mounts of the Vercors. Up there, they’ll find an ‘open-air pharmacy’, but at dusk, beware of Isengrim! The wolf is never far. Igor presents his gadgets (the sheep tail clip...) and his remarkable specimens (Skeletor and her son Skeletos). Laure fears that the real peasants will disappear and wants to help the young, Igor reassures: “As long as we’re around, it will be alright!”

Martine Rulens & Nathalie Appelmans

Graulhet (Tarn)

From the Belgian capital to rural life, from the Flat Land to the indulations of the Tarn, our two friends have chosen to dedicate themselves to “the gentle donkey walking along the holly” (F, Jammes), often unfairly treated. They live from the cosmetic milk of their thirty mares. Martine had always dreamed of it, while Nathalie discovered that “the one who never loved an animal keeps part of his soul asleep” (Anatole France).

Annabelle & Sylvain Würbel

Clansayes (Drôme)            Extract: https://vimeo.com/344662273

On Farigoule’s Domain, in the Drôme, many new farmers are tempted by pastoralism. Annabelle, a rebellious goatherdess, takes care of her animals with communicative passion. She thanks them individually for their milk, scented with the mountain flowers, that she’ll accommodate in exquisite cheeses. Sylvain, watchman of the Sylve, leads his goats to the best pantry while maintaining the forest with their help.

Anne-Gaëlle Arzel

Penhoadic (Finistère)         Extract: https://vimeo.com/344752055

On Celtic lands, an elegant and hard-working young woman has built an outdoor pig farm on her own. Anne-Gaëlle delights her eager piglets with whey, “their favorite candy”, with the liberty to frolic, to explore, to eat in self-service. Let us quote her motto: “May everyone be happy in Penhoadic (the edge of the small woods)!” But when it comes to intensive breeding farms - whose sinister cacaphony we hear in the film’s introduction - “This can’t be the same profession.”

Eric Darley

Egalières (Aveyron)

The Alchemist of the Tops. Eric and his alembic distill the lavender and juniper berries picked on the windy Larzac Causses. He produces essential oils to heal the body and soul of animals. His own - or what is left of Eric’s flock - affirm this: 2 or 3 cows, a few sheep and, above all, the white Cavale, a magical appearance in the hollow of an arbour, who greets him with a gentle neighing.

Jocelyne Porcher

Montpellier (Hérault)

The Passionaria of Animal Comfort. Rich of experiences - farmer, employee in industrial breeding, researcher at the INRA institute, lecturer, writer... - Jocelyne now brings hope to new farmers. Through the ‘Slaughterhouse at the farm’ association, co-founded with Stéphane Dinard, she remains a tireless advocate for a more dignified life and death of farm animals. Yes, Jocelyne, “all this work for 20 years was worth it”!

Nicolas Clouet

Noirmoutier (Vendée)        Extract: https://vimeo.com/344697837

The Philosopher of the Marshes. “There are worse jobs!”, he says with a laugh, Nicolas’ family have been farming for generations, from father to son. Little by little he has found his own way: a respectful breeding of cattle on the island of Noirmoutier. His doe-eyed Maraîchine cows live the good life, between sea and sky, between salt and earth: they calve in tall grass, graze at will and enrich nature in return.

Hélène & Welfarm

Vauquois (Meuse) and Metz (Moselle)

Hélène devotes herself to those who have been left behind, whatever the species. To name just a few animals, there’s Billy, a small ‘scapegoat’ found wandering in the streets; Oscar, a huge and hilarious pig, cumbersome and abandoned; several mutilated sows and hens from intensive farms... In this Noah’s Ark, Hélène and her colleagues try to redeem pityless humans and uninformed consumers.

To Raise and Rise