The Courageous
Director: Jasmin Gordon
Cast:Ophelia Kolb, Jasmine Kalisz Saurer, Paul Besnier, Arthur Devaux
Crew:Writer: Julien Bouissoux. Producers: Brigitte Hofer, Cornelia Seitler
Email:mmaggi@maximage.ch
Synopsis
In a small town on the edge of wild country, an eccentric and delinquent mother has had enough of the rules. Crushed by her mistakes and by a society that doesn’t give a damn – or a second chance – to people like her, she’ll do anything to prove to her children, and to herself, that she still is a good person.
Trailer
About the director
Jasmin Gordon is a director of both Swiss and American origins. Before graduating from Stanford University's Documentary Film MA program in 2006, she studied Literature and Photography in the US and in France. Her shorts have screened at festivals such as SXSW, Slamdance, Festival Européen du Film Court de Brest, Encounters Short Film Festival, AFI Docs and have received awards such as the Princess Grace Foundation Award, an ITVS Grand Jury Prize and two International Documentary Association nominations. THE COURAGEOUS, her debut feature, celebrated its world premiere at the Toronto International Film Festival and was the recipient of the Critics’ Award as well as the Ecumenical prize at the Zurich Film Festival in 2024.
Filmmaker's note
THE COURAGEOUS is an exploration of my profound interest in the fragility of individual freedom in the face of society and its conventions. It is a search for answers to the questions I ask myself daily: what do we lose when we conform to the expectations of the norm? What happens to our moral integrity when faced with adversity? And just how far are we willing to go to uphold appearances? In creating a portrait of a truly complex woman and mother --unascertainable, imperfect, tender and fascinating-- THE COURAGEOUS tells a story about the importance of being different and of staying different even in the eye of the storm.