THE SUN NEVER SETS ON ME - JULIEN JACA

documentary

Explore art as therapy with tattoo artist turned painter Julien Jaca

This short documentary is a journey through Julien’s life, exploring how art helped him to recover from a personal tragedy and how self-expression can fight inner demons.

Excerpt from Douglas Guillot's interview on the film for Nowness

Douglas Guillot, one-half of the French directing duo David & Douglas, speaks about unearthing Julien’s story. “I discovered Julien's story through some mutual friends, from a personal point of view, his story touched me directly, I prepared the film while expecting my first child. I found it interesting to talk about the power of art and how, through his painting, Julien managed to overcome the loss of his daughter.”

“What also inspired me is the courage he had to leave everything behind to devote himself to his art and find the path in life he has always sought” continues Douglas. “Today he’s completely fulfilled and several international galleries are interested in his art.”

“From a cinematographic point of view, I worked with the director of photography Hadrien Vedel, and we immediately decided to shoot on film to match Julien's artistic universe, something raw and grainy but with a colorful aspect. He draws a lot of his inspiration from American culture and the cinema of the 70s, that's why we used an anamorphic format, paying homage to the great films of that time.”

“I grew up in a region in the southwest of France called Les Landes, it’s the backdrop of our story, a region surrounded by pine trees on one side and the Atlantic Ocean on the other. It reigns there a certain quietude. I also wanted to pay homage to the landscape of my childhood through this project. Being able to film Julien in the forest or on the beach that he used to recharge his batteries really made this film one of my most personal projects.”