Passé Simple

Three thousand years before Stonehenge and the sculpted menhirs of Filitosa were created, an enigmatic figure was carved on a stela in Balchiria, southern Corsica, where it recentlyresurfaced. Is it a god or a demon? A warrior or a sorcerer? What was its function? Embark on this archaeological expedition that will take us from the excavations of Balchiria, by way of Greece, Spain and Sardinia, to the far corners of the Mediterranean. This voyage into the past will track the mysterious sculpture on the different stages of its long journey

Thomas Faucher, researcher, archaeologist and numismatist, leads the “Minting Coins" project, the aim of which is to gain a greater understanding of the different eras of coin manufacture in Antiquity. In the laboratory and thanks to experimental archaeology, his team explores the different links in the chain, from raw metal and the engraving of coin die-stamps to the minting of coins.

Narbo Martius, the ancient city of Narbonne in the French region of Aude,has been slightly forgotten by our history books. And with good reason!The majority of its vestiges are not visible, unlike the cities of Nîmesand Arles. However, it was the first capital of Gaul, founded by Romein 118 B.C. and called “the daughter of Rome”. For the first time, thisdocumentary reveals to us one of the most important cities of the RomanEmpire, which was also the second port of Antiquity, after that of Rome.Archaeologists have spent 25 years making extraordinary new finds.

A team of archaeologists from Bordeaux travels to South Africa with a specific goal: to date the oldest vestiges of artistic activity in the history of mankind. Surrounded by magnificent African landscapes, travelling from the Atlantic coast to the shores of the Pacific and from the desert to the tropical forest, we will journey through one of the most ancient territories occupied by Homo sapiens as we search to date the oldest representations of symbolic thought.

This contemplative animated film allows us to visit the Roman city of Nîmes through the illustrations of Jean-Claude Golvin, a specialist in restoring ancient monuments. Viewers move through the artist's watercolours, which show the most iconic monuments of the ancient city of Nemausus through 2D and 3D animation techniques: the Tour Magne, the Maison Carrée, the Amphitheatre or the Temple of Diana, to mention just a few.

What was an ordinary day like in the life of a Palaeolithic hunter? What resources did they count on to adapt to the harsh weather conditions of the environment? This film tells the adventures of Handa, the best walker of the Pyrenean clan; Tora, the tanner; and Woopa, his dog. The three of them have set out to search for new hunting grounds, at a time when large herbivores have left the mountain, which is taken over by increasingly tall trees.

In this film, viewers take the place of a young prehistoric woman and move through an imaginary cave where galleries and masterpieces of European prehistoric art appear: Chauvet, Lascaux, Niaux, El Castillo, Pech Merle, Cougnac, Foz Coa... Suddenly, the animals drawn on the walls come to life by torchlight... A short film to get swept away by the beauty of Palaeolithic art.

The Pompey Trophy was erected in the Eastern Pyrenees between 73-71 BC, to celebrate the triumph of the Roman general in the Sertorian Wars. Despite the importance of the monument, the interpretation of the ruins is complicated. To facilitate its interpretation, its appearance has been restored using images, which, based on archaeological research, allow its appearance to be recreated. Official Section. Place: Amaia K.Z. (Irun)

Who were the first Europeans? For almost 2 million years, Europe has experienced incessant migrations and successive stages of survival and adaptation to new lands. Providing an account of this continuous evolution over such a long period is no mean feat, but the documentary manages to construct a coherently-argued summary through technological, artistic and cultural indicators representative of the early inhabitants of our continent.