L’Exposée
August 1856 : Eunice Newton Foote realizes she has just made an important scientific discovery. An American amateur researcher, she has proven the role of CO2 emissions in heating the atmosphere. Eunice discovered the greenhouse effect – the Circumstances affecting the Heat of the Sun’s Rays – and indirectly, the cause of rising temperatures in the climate. Unfortunately, she was not able to present her results herself because she was a woman.
Even though Eunice was able to access a scientific education, thanks to the determination of a small group of visionary men who founded the Troy Female Seminar, her gender prevented her from ever receiving the recognition that the genius of her work deserved in her lifetime.
A century-and-a-half later, what is a woman’s current place in scientific research? What connections can be made between the invisibility of women, despite the value of their vision, and the blindness of our societies in the face of environmental destruction? And what about those leaders that fight for equal access to education but see their efforts sabotaged by a society that refuses to make a place for everyone? How can we hope to reconcile gender and different points of view while guaranteeing a space for each of us?
“L’Exposée” is a short fiction film directed by Sonia Delhaye and produced by the Bureau des Curiosités and in partnership with Wiifilm. Séverine Vasselin, actress and founder of Watertrek and Wiifilm, delves into the portrayal of the two female roles, each reflections of her own personal convictions.
This short film links the respect for Life with respect for women, bringing up the question of social inequalities from the 19th Century to today, suggesting that we think not only about the impact of environmental pollution, but also of social pollution in our world.
If “Science has no country nor gender“, as Eunice’s colleague Joseph Henry began when presenting her article, “the exploitation of life is intrinsically linked to the exploitation of humans,” Dr. Malcom Ferdinand points out.
This film is a departure point from which speakers from a wide range of backgrounds could share their ideas, and which could be used in the organization of conferences on a variety of topics due to the richness of thematic material, and its mosaic film style orchestrated around female characters from different eras, of different ages and cultures.
With
Eunice/doctorante : Séverine VASSELIN
Joseph HENRY/Professor VANIER : Régis ROMELE
Elisha FOOTE : Erwan DE FLIGUE
Student: Dimitri FOUQUE
Student 2: Sylvain LE GALL
Student 3: Maxime LELUE
Director/Scriptwriter : Sonia DELHAYE
1 er assistant : Julien TRIGER
Producer Bureau des Curiosités : Teddy AYMARD
Producer Picseyes : Jennifer JAUZE
Producer Wiifilm : Séverine VASSELIN
Production Manager : Bryan DAMIEN
Production Assistant : Liz KHOULI
Chief operator : Emilie AUJE
1 er assistant : Fanny BEGOIN
Colorgrading : Coralie CHALON
Photographer : Christian FOURNIER
Sound Engineer : Gauthier HAMMER
Composer : Mathieu MICHARD
Sound Mixing : Yohann MOURE
Head decoration : Lola BRETON
Costums : Erwan DE FLIGUE
Wiifilm wishes to thank John PERLIN in Santa Barbara, author of the very first biography about Eunice Newton Foote, who has accompanied us and provided us with its original script.
To join one of our screenings, find our schedule here.
