Martin Soudan
Born to French parents, I grew up in Brussels before coming to study in Paris. During my studies in political science, I lived in Montreal, Beirut, then London and Barcelona.
I discovered the world of filmmaking as an intern at Mandarin Cinéma and then in international sales at Wild Bunch. I continued my career in distribution and production at Pathé Films, then Full House (a label of Borsalino Productions and Maneki Films) and SND, before joining La Fémis as a student in the ‘series writing and creation’ programme.
A reader and film buff, I have always loved writing, but it was in 2020 that I took the plunge by writing and directing my first short film, Bons Amis, which was selected for a dozen festivals and won the broadcaster’s prize at the 19th UniFrance Short Film Awards.
Coming to work at Groupe Ouest means the luxury of being able to think only about your film and its characters for a few days or weeks over the year and also think about the films and characters of the people you work with. The setting allows us to cut ourselves off from everything else, and it's an amazing opportunity to be able to dream about what might one day become a film!
Auteur-réalisateur
Quatre Août
Sélection Annuelle 2021
Every year, the Beaumont family gathers for all of August in their big holiday house by the sea. Standing the test of time, this home is a stage on which the life of a family is played out over four summers, between 1996 and 2030. We experience these four summers through the eyes of Timothée, a quiet but observant and sensitive child, and Chiara, a friend of his mother’s who comes every year to share the family’s holidays. Together, they form a special bond, imperceptible to others, which allows them both to move forward in their lives.