Name: US Avant-Premiere No Chains No Masters (Ni Chaînes ni maîtres)
Start: 2025-02-03T18:30:00-05:00
End: 2025-02-03T21:00:00-05:00
Location: Maison Française

$US Avant-Premiere No Chains No Masters (Ni Cha\u00eenes ni ma\u00eetres)$

Simon Moutaïrou, 2024, 98 min.
In French with English subtitles
Screening and Q&A with director Simon Moutaïrou
About this Event

Ni Chaînes ni maîtres takes place in 1759 on the Isle de France, the French colony now known as Mauritius. In this fictional story, Massamba and his daughter Mati, enslaved people on Eugène Larcenet’s plantation, live in fear and toil. One night, Mati flees in search of a community of fugitive slaves – known as maroons – who are said to live free in the greatest secrecy. The plantation owner hires a slave hunter, Madame la Victoire, to track Mati down, and Massamba has no choice but to escape as well.

Simon Moutaïrou’s film, situated on the borderline between historical drama and adventure film, explores the history of marronage in colonial France. It fills a striking void; only one other French feature film (Case Départ) has been released about the history of slavery in French colonies in the past 20 years. Ni Chaînes ni maîtres also offers a strong contrast to American movie portrayals of slavery and resistance. The film’s release in France just a few months ago has generated considerable interest and provoked discussions about the history and meaning of slavery in the French colonies.

After years of writing screenplays for others - Julien Leclercq (Braqueurs, L'Assaut), Yann Gozlan (Burn Out, Boite Noire) - Ni Chaînes ni Maîtres is Simon Moutaïrou’s first feature film.