From a sun-soaked surfers’ paradise to inner-city Paris and the majestic mountains of Corsica, Upon Her Lips: French Kiss sweeps you away with four enchanting short films about relationships, both new, existing, changing, and transformational. NQV Media’s Upon Her Lips: French Kiss is now available to rent, buy or stream on Prime Video and Payhip worldwide.
From a sun-soaked surfers’ paradise to inner-city Paris and the majestic mountains of Corsica, Upon Her Lips: French Kiss sweeps you away with four enchanting short films about relationships, both new, existing, changing, and transformational. Once again, NQV Media has curated a collection of shorts that highlight the very best in short-form film, with French filmmakers taking centre stage.
Upon Her Lips: French Kiss opens with ONE ANOTHER (L’une et l’autre) directed by Camille Roux. Although it started as a home for the aristocracy, London’s Soho would soon become a destination for musicians, avant-garde artists, bohemians and those on the margins of society. Likewise, the Pigalle district of Paris has long been a hub of social and cultural diversity. From the famous Moulin Rouge to nightclubs, bars, studios and strip clubs, Pigalle is a place where anything seems possible and random meetings can carry excitement, uncertainty, and heat.
In the winding streets of Pigalle, Elma finds herself captivated by a woman leaving a strip club. The woman is alluring and mysterious, and so Elma makes an impulsive decision to follow her, possibly not for the first time. Later that night, at a bar, her secret crush is there. This time, she speaks to the woman, introduces herself, and learns the woman’s name, Estelle, as they bond over a cigarette. Estelle is friendly and welcoming, but Elma wants more, and soon she is babysitting Estelle’s daughter while Estelle works as an erotic dancer at night.
Camille Roux’s knotty tale of obsession, desire and uncertainty almost strays into thriller territory on several occasions. But, at its heart, it’s about a hidden nighttime desire that Elma can’t shake and Estelle is unaware of.
The second film in the Upon Her Lips: French Kiss collection is RED PANDA TEMPTATION, directed by Haïga Jappain. All relationships change over time as partners’ differing needs converge, creating new paths. However, differing needs can also create tension for a loving couple, with the foundations of the relationship in question as one partner wants to go one way and the other wants to go another. For some couples, the question of whether to have children can be a pivotal moment in their union and challenging to navigate. Thirty-five-year-old Anne is about to discover this when the question of having a child becomes a pressing issue in her relationship with Marie.
Jappain beautifully explores how sudden news and a ticking biological clock can radically alter a woman’s feelings for a loving partner as the need to bring a new life into the world consumes her every thought, but not her partner’s. With discussions around menopause, feelings of being left behind, conflict in ethical beliefs, unrealistic expectations, and the challenge of sperm donation, Red Panda Temptation is a powerful exploration of the moment when a loving and tender relationship hits a fork in the road that could become a dead end.
Like Red Panda Temptation, BREAKING THROUGH (L’Échappée), directed by Siham Bel, is also about choices, decisions and the fallout that can follow. Safia left her childhood home in Corsica many years ago, building her own life away from her ageing dad and her loving younger brother. But while her own space has given her a chance to be herself and not hide her sexuality, she has continued to do so at home, fearing her dad’s reaction. Now, Safia has decided it’s time to be honest, and as she dances with her dad at a family party, she is silently preparing herself for the right moment to come out.
We don’t see that moment in Siham Bel’s beautifully shot film; instead, we see the aftermath as Safia leaves her childhood home the next day, with her brother begging her to stay. Safia has no car or bike; her only option is to set off into the mountains on foot, something she is more than prepared to do to escape the tension. As she walks, the sun beating down, a local woman called Jade stops her car to offer Safia a lift. There’s an immediate spark of attraction, but will Safia let Jade in or push her away when her questions get too close to home?
The famous saying “save the best for last” applies to Upon Her Lips: French Kiss, as Héléna Klotz’s beautiful short, LOVE SEA (Amour Océan), closes the collection. For seventeen-year-old Jeanne, the summer is coming to an end, and with it, long days spent on the beach with her younger sister Camille. Those beach breaks are essential for Jeanne, who not only looks after her sister but also her dad. Her father works hard to support her and her sister on the military base they call home, but it is Jeanne who manages the flat, cooks their meals, and ensures everyone is taken care of. All she wants in return is some freedom and some thanks, but that is often in short supply.
As summer draws to a close and a new school year snaps at her heels, she decides it’s time for her and her sister to spend one last long and leisurely day at the beach: a farewell to the freedom of summer. Little does she know she is about to meet a young surfer who is captivating, alluring and unlike anyone she has ever met before.
With stunning sound design, beautiful performances from Mathilde Dupont-Corbran, Louison Bejaoui and Eva Bouet and captivating cinematography, every minute of Amour Océan is akin to a fine wine you savour during a long summer evening. Jeanne’s world finally opens up as the sun sets, and we hope this transformational day is just the start of something new as she arrives home and, rather than pick a fight with her dad, who has been worried for their safety, hugs him tightly. Short films don’t get much better than this.
Follow Us