Christophe Cognet

Attuned to traces of the past and memory, his films explore power structures, the creative process, and the emotional force of images. His work often takes the form of a cinematic meditation on art and visual culture right at the edge of human experience—a reflection he has also pursued through articles, books, and public lectures. His films have been shown around the world, across five continents, through television, theatrical releases, and have been selected at over forty film festivals.

Filmography

“Sept mille années” (fiction, 15 min, 2017, with Mathieu Amalric and François Lebrun)
“Parce que j’étais peintre” (documentary, 1h44, 2014, France-Germany – released in theaters in seven countries)
“Les anneaux du serpent” (essay, 45 min, 2008, Arte)
“Quand nos yeux sont fermés” (documentary, 55 min, 2005, TV5 Monde)
“L’Atelier de Boris” (doc, 1h36, 2004)
“Les Sentiers de Fred” (doc, 2001, France 2)
“L’affaire Dominici par O. Welles” (doc 52 min, 2000, Cinéclassics, France2)
“Gongonbili, de l’autre côté de la colline” (doc, 63 min, 1997, Canal+ international).

He is also a screenwriter, script consultant, and author of articles on cinema and art (notably in the journal Vertigo). He was an artist-in-residence at Espace Khiasma, a contemporary art center, in 2014–2015 (performances based on a text by Kierkegaard, with Agathe Bonitzer, Geoffroy Carey, and Jérôme Imard).

He is currently developing a feature-length documentary on clandestine photographs from Nazi camps (produced by L’Atelier Documentaire), as well as a book on the same topic to be published by Éditions du Seuil. He is also working on a fiction feature film, Les Attractions, an adaptation of Le ParK by Bruce Bégout (produced by Seconde Vague Productions).