Original subtitles

Short film directed by Jacques Rozier in 1963

during the filming of the feature LE MEPRIS.

Digitized in 4K and restored in 2K

from the origin a I image negative and sound negative by Hiventy

with the support of the CNC.

You arrived in Capri at 5:00 in the evening on May 17, 1963.

You were in Capri to film the exteriors for Contempt,

Jean-Luc Godard's film adaption of a novel by Alberto Moravia.

In Capri at the same time and for the same reason were

Fritz Lang,

Jack Palance,

Michel Piccoli

and Giorgia Moll.

Each morning, you'd go to an isolated spot on the southeast tip of the island.

There stands a villa that once belonged to the Italian author Curzio Malaparte,

where the last part of Contempt was to be shot.

On the terrace...

indoors...

Orin the immediate surroundings.

Built on a rocky promontory,

the villa was an ideal work setting.

One path led from the village of Capri,

but access by sea was easier.

It was practically impossible to approach without permission from the production.

Soldiers under the direction of Commander Ventrone

patrolled the surrounding area.

The only chance for the curious was to approach by sea,

or to observe from a distance with binoculars.

Brigitte Bardot is the most photographed woman in the world.

Brigitte Bardot is the most photographed woman in the world.

And if the most photographed woman in the world comes to your neighborhood,

you and your family simply must go and meet her.

Kindly keep your distance.

Please.

We're working here.

Bye, beautiful!

Once again from the top, please.

Naples, May 17.

Half an hour before sailing for Capri. The ship's not yet at the dock.

Brigitte's in the car and would like to get out.

Everyone takes pictures of the Eiffel Tower and the Arc de Triomphe,

and everyone takes pictures of Brigitte Bardot.

Why this camera mania?

It's not just "BB" the actress that fascinates the crowds,

but "BB" in real life.

"BB" works as well in a newspaper head line as on a movie marquis,

and for some years now,

Brigitte Bardot has played nonstop the role of..

Because the public asks it of her, Brigitte kindly plays the part.

She opens her door and invites you in.

Well-mannered people know to leave when the moment has come.

There's a certain kind of press that has no manners,

that will peek through the keyhole of a locked door

and tell what they see, even if they see nothing.

They'll print pictures that say just what they want them to say.

The important thing is to get the picture.

In Italy all this has given rise to the strange characters called:

May 20, the Villa Malaparte.

Godard finishes setting up the next shot.

You relax and lie in the sun.

The sound engineer horses around.

We'll rehearse in a moment.

Places, everyone.

Godard comes to get you.

In this shot, Michel Piccoli, playing your husband.

Why do you despise me? Tell me or I'll hurt you.

Why hurt me on top of it?

You decide to get revenge.

Jicky Dussart, the photographer on the shoot, captures this moment...

as well as the next, in which Michel Piccoli,

seeking forgiveness, helps you up the steps.

But that May afternoon, Jicky's camera was not the only one in action.

These hastily snapped photos are of poor quality.

Nevertheless, certain newspapers will find them precious documents,

or perhaps just profitable.

You'd like to have the right, like everyone else,

to lower your head when descending the stairs

so as to avoid missing a step.

But if a telephoto lens is hidden behind rocks 100 feet away,

just the act of lowering your head can take on weighty significance.

For in the language of certain reporters,

I owe ring your head takes on a different meaning.

Brigitte comes out of hiding

The newspaper in question considers it unimportant to mention

that the picture was taken at the Villa Malaparte in Italy.

Yet that's where it was taken, on May 29 at 4:00 p.m.,

by photographers you felt no need to flee from

because you never even saw them,

and you never saw them because they were hidden.

They'd been following Brigitte since filming began in Rome.

She arrived in Capri on May 17. They in turn arrived on the 18th.

Look at the beautiful girls in Capri!

They came here with a purpose, these were no amateurs

and answered to the names of..

Lucciano.

Claudio Valente, of Valente Photo Agency.

Paolo.

The paparazzi's tools of the trade:

a 300 mm telephoto lens, with a 3.5 aperture,

which can get a full-body shot from 150 feet away.

A Vespa.

A pair of legs.

Endurance.

A flash.

Their secret weapons: patience and stubbornness.

Tuesday, May 21, 10:00 a.m.

You board the boat for the Villa Malaparte.

They are there.

At 10:30 the same day, you arrive at the villa.

Jean-Luc!

They are there.

Thursday, May 23, 5:00 p.m.

You set out to go water-skiing.

They are there.

Friday, May 24, 3:00 p.m.

You listen to Godard's instructions. So do they.

You shout "Camille" here.

Once Brigitte has gone over there,

you count to five,

and then you go.

Saturday, May 25. The day began badly. Everyone is tense.

Those paparazzi have been there all day.

No one can stand this constant surveillance.

Godard least of all,

and he'll tell them so himself

Brigadier Ventrone follows behind and translates.

Furious at being driven off, Claudio, Lucciano and Paolo decide

they'll get the definitive picture of Bardot that night,

no matter what it takes.

The clash takes place outside the restaurant where you've had dinner.

They insult people in the street, me in particular.

The people with me are forced to react.

That's when they file charges

saying we attacked and beat them.

The poor souls!

The next morning they report they were beaten up

to the local correspondents for Il Tempo, Il Mattino,

and Il Messaggero di Roma.

The next day those papers run articles...

Bardot's Fiancé Attacks Photographer

...unflattering to Brigitte.

Why that article in the paper?

Because you're not kind to us.

We were very upset, Brigitte,

and we wanted to let the public know what you are.

Why don't you ever let us take pictures?

We're not interested in taking photos like that of Brigitte Bardot.

In the evening

after work, we have to go off on the Vespa

in search of Brigitte Bardot.

In the morning, still tired, we get up quickly.

We have to stay at our observation post.

All day long.

Sunshine

or storms.

We have to eat a sandwich.

And just at that moment,

there's Bardot.

We're about to shoot!

What's the best shot of Bardot for you?

A bathing suit.

A bikini. Those are great pictures for the weeklies.

I'm sure if we could get a picture of her with the little dog,

Il Tempo, Il Settimo Giorno, l'Europeo would print it right away.

But that's impossible.

She's always surrounded by police

and soldiers.

They stop us.

At the very moment,

we're about to get a picture.

Of course,

all this in spite of our sincere efforts to convince the soldiers

that we need to eat every day!

We're not lucky enough to have Jicky Dussart's job,

the photographer on Bardot's production.

He can do anything he wants.

He can work completely at ease,

in a relaxed and casual way.

Artfully, simply

and elegantly.

While we, poor unfortunates,

are forced to work in the rocks,

at the risk of injury,

in the blazing sunshine

amongst the thorns.

And we get yelled at by our press agency to boot!

The only thing that bothers us

is having someone among us who doesn't take it seriously.

First he cuts the name "La Stampa" out of the paper and puts it on his hat.

Then he draws everyone's attention to his hand that's in a cast.

It makes a terrible impression.

It's very hard to believe,

but he broke his neck in April on the Via Veneto.

He slipped on a banana peel.

It's his temperament. We can't stop him.

In the morning, it's impossible to wake him.

It's impossible to work this way.

Given that it's an important person.

We're the unlucky ones,

the least respected.

The police, who are paid by the production company,

prefer to protect Brigitte Bardot

rather than us.

We were hoping for a lot more.

At a certain point, you can't work that way anymore.

Climbing up mountains to take pictures

with a telephoto lens from 600 feet away.

To think that to get a picture with a telephoto lens,

we risk falling to our death from a cliff.

We're not interested.

We're not interested.

What would make us happy

would be to take a really good photo, a close up of Brigitte Bardot.

But it's impossible.

So, in the laboratory,

they have to use the enlarger

to get something.

And obviously, we get bawled out again.

Is this the last time you'll ever take pictures of Bardot?

You'd try again if she came back to Italy?

Yes.

You see.

THE END