In northern France, Gabin, the youngest of the Jourdel family, finds himself destined to take over his father’s butcher shop. Torn between family loyalty and a desire to break free, his dreams lie elsewhere: to train a contest cow, to become a dog breeder, and to save his mother’s farm from financial ruin. Spanning a decade, GABIN immerses us in this young boy’s world, following his journey from age 8 to 18.
SCREENINGS & AWARDS
World Premiere: Cannes Film Festival – Quinzaine des Cinéastes 2026
PRESS
Reviews: Next Best Picture, Business Doc Europe, Variety, In Review Online, Cineuropa, Screen Daily, Deadline – Trailer Premiere, Variety – Acquisition Announcement
Interviews: Cineuropa, The Hollywood Reporter
***
“Ten years of on-off filming are condensed into a real-life Boyhood, a coming-of-age drama that is as much about a place, time and society as it is about its titular protagonist.”
Lee Marshall, Screen Daily
“Gabin is remarkable both for its immediacy… and its feel for story.”
*
“Marvelous Cannes Discovery”
Guy Lodge, Variety
“a remarkably fleet, fluent feat of observation and editing”
“Like many of the best documentarians, Voiseux sheds light on lives we wouldn’t otherwise see”
*
“Capturing ten years of life, documentary filmmaker Maxence Voiseux accomplishes a remarkable cinematic experience, grounded in humanity and woven with subtle finesse”
Fabien Lemercier, Cineuropa
“Beneath the surface of an impressively intimate realism, captured over a decade, the French filmmaker reveals a highly subtle mastery of suggestion and mise-en-scène.”
“Completely immersing himself in the everyday life of his main character with an extraordinary invisible closeness, [Maxence Voiseux] paints a deeply endearing portrait of youth and delivers a remarkably accurate snapshot of local life, culture and economics.”
DIRECTOR’S BIOGRAPHY & FILMOGRAPHY
Maxence Voiseux
Maxence VOISEUX was born in the Ardennes in 1988. After studying science, he began studying documentary filmmaking at the University of Paris VII, where he trained in directing and editing.
GABIN is his first feature film.
Filmography
2026 – GABIN (feature documentary)
2023 – ULTRAS (medium-length documentary)
2021 – SHE IS ONE OF US (short film)
2019 – THE CRACK (medium-length documentary)
2017 – THE LAST SOCIALIST (medium-length documentary)
2015 – THE HEIRS (medium-length documentary)
CREDITS
Screenplay Maxence Voiseux
Image François Chambe, Martin Roux
Sound Elton Rabineau, Ilù Seydoux
Editing Pascale Hannoyer, Natali Barrey
Sound Design Henry Sims, Ilù Seydoux
Mixing Maxence Ciekawy
Composer Nicolas Rabaeus
Producers Cécile Lestrade, Elise Hug
Co-producers Ulla Lehmann, Palmyre Badinier
Production company Alter Ego Production
Co-production Ama Film, Rita Productions
In co-production with SWR-Arte and SSR-RTS
French Distributor Arizona Distribution
WITH THE SUPPORT OF
Eurimages, CNC/FFA Mini-Traité Franco-Allemand, CNC, BAK, MFG Filmförderung Baden- Württemberg, Pictanovo, Région Hauts de France, Cinéforom, Ciclic, Région Centre, Procirep-Angoa
Recipient of the SCAM « Brouillon d’un Rêve » grant; winner of the Moulin d’Andé scriptwriting residency
IDFAcademy program for emerging filmmakers 2018
EURODOC Producer’s Training Program 2020
Market/pitch of Visions du Réel (Nyon, Switzerland) 2023 -> Unifrance Pitch Award
Les Arcs Film Festival – Work-in-Progress 2024 -> special mention, Alphapanda Jury
PRODUCER’S BIOGRAPHY & FILMOGRAPHY
Cécile Lestrade
Cécile Lestrade began her career by studying modern literature in France. She then worked as a French teacher abroad and as a projectionist in an arthouse cinema.
Since 2007, she has been producing creative documentary films, backed by training from Eurodoc in 2008 and the EAVE Producers Workshop in 2019.
Elise Hug
Elise Hug is a creative producer with an academic background in visual arts, cinema, and film theory. She holds two Master’s degrees in documentary filmmaking and documentary production. She joined ALTER EGO PRODUCTION in 2014. Elise is also an alumna of Eurodoc (2020), and Emerging Producers (2025).
PRODUCTION COMPANY
ALTER EGO PRODUCTION
Alter Ego Production is an independent production company based in Orléans (France), dedicated to creative documentaries. Run by producers Cécile Lestrade and Elise Hug, the company works alongside filmmakers with bold, sensitive, and politically engaged visions.
Our production approach is grounded in deep involvement in the creative process and a long-term commitment. To us, producing means understanding what inspires a filmmaker and creating the conditions in which their project can flourish.
We produce films for both cinema and television, and we are actively involved in international co-productions to provide each project with greater resources, expanded visibility, and wider distribution opportunities. Our films have been selected and awarded at numerous international festivals.
Alter Ego Production
48 rue de Bourgogne 45000 Orléans
France
info@alterego-prod.com
+33 2 38 80 79 44
www.alterego-production.com
CO-PRODUCTION COMPANIES
AMA FILM is an independent production company based in Stuttgart with another office in Berlin. We produce films that lead the audience into unknown territories or bring them closer to themselves. Films of creative or social relevance. Films that communicate with the world.
Our focus is on creative documentaries as well as innovative feature films with their own artistic signature, including MIDWIVES by Hnin Ei Hlaing (Sundance/CPH:Dox), WOOD AND WATER by Jonas Bak (Berlinale/New Directors New Films N.Y.) and THE INNER LIGHT by Stefan Sick (Berlinale/Shanghai IFF).
The managing partners are Andrea Roggon (director/producer) and Ulla Lehmann (producer).
Ama Film
Germany
mail@amafilm.de
+49 173 64 61 594
www.amafilm.de/
RITA PRODUCTIONS
Founded in 2003 by Pauline Gygax and Max Karli, RITA produces fiction and documentary films, mainly through international co-productions. For over 20 years, the company has supported Swiss and international filmmakers with a strong cinematic vision and a distinctive political perspective on the world.
RITA’s recent productions include The Line by Ursula Meier (Berlinale Official Competition 2022), Continental Drift (South) by Lionel Baier (Directors’ Fortnight 2022), and De Humani Corporis Fabrica by Verena Paravel and Lucien Castaing-Taylor (Directors’ Fortnight 2022). Their catalogue also includes acclaimed titles such as My Life as a Zucchini by Claude Barras, nominated for the 2017 Academy Awards.
RITA also produces series, including Helvetica (award-winning at La Rochelle 2019) and Sacha (world premiere at GIFF 2021). In 2022, producer Palmyre Badinier joined the company to strengthen its documentary slate.
Rita Productions
Chantepoulet 1 1201 Genève
Switzerland
rita@ritaproductions.com
+41 22 775 15 50
https://ritaproductions.com/
