The much-anticipated latest treasure from Céline Sciamma (Portrait of a Lady on Fire, Girlhood), PETITE MAMAN is a sublime modern fairytale about the quiet wonder of mother-daughter relationships. After the death of her beloved grandmother, eight-year-old Nelly meets a mysterious friend in the woods. Together they embark on a fantastical journey of discovery which helps Nelly come to terms with this newfound loss. A favourite of the 2021 Berlin Film Festival, Sciamma’s new masterwork examines childhood, memory and loss with a typically delicate touch, elegantly weaved together into an enchanting and moving depiction of love and acceptance.

This latest offering from Sciamma feels like a much-needed warm embrace, leaving both protagonist and audience in a good place.

The Birds Eye View team loved this quiet, contemplative look at loss, grief and memory seen through the eyes of an eight-year-old girl.  This smart, moving, emotionally intelligent (and, ultimately uplifting), perfectly paced ghost story come fairy tale is, like everything  Sciamma touches,  authentic, original and refreshing. In less capable hands we might easily be subjected to over-sentimentality. Sciamma never subjects her audience to this – she never tells us how we should think or feel – she shows, she doesn’t tell. She goes deep rather than wide and trusts herself, and us, to join the dots.