Youth – An ode to the young
Today, Director Olivier Richomme debuts his latest work – Youth – a striking and impactful short film that delves into the thoughts, hopes and fears of young people on the cusp of adulthood. It explores what young people of today dream of, are afraid of, their predictions of the future, questions about life and what ultimately inspires and frustrates them.
The film does not have any reference to time or place. Its approach is timeless with a universal visual language. However, the choice of location and costume is very intentional. Richomme believes the young people featured have been forced to concern themselves with worries beyond their years and this is portrayed in the kitsch and dated style, look and feel, which harnesses a sense of nostalgia and anachronism.
By removing the markers of time, the film explores whether young people’s answers are alike to those of previous generations. It highlights a recurring historical theme that sees generations compelled to judge people who grew up in a different time. The narrative confirms that the predictions of a bleak future are taking its toll on young people.
Despite the constant negative news cycle, lack of resources in children’s mental health, social media’s ceaseless thirst for melodrama and fear of looming environmental disaster, the piece has an underlying feeling of hope, humour and optimism. It builds on a thirst for life and highlights young people’s ability to look at the brighter side of their circumstances.
Working in close collaboration with stylist @vickyolschak and shot on super 16mm film by cinematographer @sean___lomax this film is an ode to the young, an allegory, a poem. Director Olivier Richomme didn’t intend to find any definitive answers. He just needed to ask the questions.
Richmomme says: “The idea for this film started in the midst of the pandemic. I started asking myself what life would be like for a young person today, going through one of the most seismic societal turmoils in living memory. I was curious about what young people of today are dreaming of, afraid of, what they think the future holds, what questions they have and what inspires them. I was hoping to get a glimpse into their lives, at the strange time between child and adult – being on the brink of adulthood, the echoes of their childhood still very present in their mind. What I found was a myriad of answers, a lot of doubts and fears about the future of the world but also a lot of wisdom, sometimes disguised as blunt naivety with a comic undercurrent.”
To watch the film, click here.