Les capes laissaient leurs images multipliées dans le frisson de la poussière - Federico Garcia Lorca
A series following the lives of a group of young boys in the South of France brought together by their passion and their dream of one day becoming matadors.
Students a L'Ecole Taurine d'Arles train twice a week for 3 hours throughout the year. The children start as becerristas and after years of training some will go on to qualify as novilleros. Very few will ever make it to becoming a matador, let alone a figura like their idols El Juli, Juan Bautista or Michelito.
The training is intense. From a young age the boys are treated as adults. If they miss a training session, they miss out. If Paquito, their trainer and a retired bullfighter, doesn't see 100% commitment and dedication, they won't be entered into the summer ferias. These take place in most towns and villages in the region during the summer, and give the young bullfighters the chance of facing real bulls, and perhaps more daunting, a public.
Camille wanted to capture an honest documentary, being with the young toreros both in the arena, but also outside of it, away from the performance and the glam that comes with being a bullfighter. The journey towards becoming a matador is both physically and emotionally demanding. The bullfighting world can be cruel, it is about death and ultimately there is always fear for the children.