Être & Avoir (re-release)

Être & Avoir is a loving and heartwarming documentary about a small village school in the Auvergne, where teacher Georges Lopez single-handedly teaches thirteen children aged four to twelve. Director Nicolas Philibert spent ten weeks in the classroom with this charismatic educator, patiently and attentively capturing how he guides his pupils with calm, care, and dedication—from learning to read to solving math problems. The children differ in age, personality, and skill level, but together they form a close-knit class, followed from the harsh winter through to the summer holidays. Interspersed with lyrical shots of the changing French landscape, Philibert paints an intimate portrait of both school and home life—on the farm, around the dinner table, or struggling with homework (sometimes with \"help\" from their parents). Since its release in 2002, Être & Avoir became an international phenomenon. In France, nearly two million people saw the film, with over a million more worldwide. Dutch audiences also flocked to cinemas. The documentary won multiple prestigious awards, including the European Film Award for Best Documentary, and sparked a nostalgic longing for the simplicity of village life and the kind of patient, personal education that is increasingly rare.