Nuages

As a teen, Belgian director Marion Hänsel wanted to be an artist. That desire was terminated by William Turner's imposing skies. His wonderful clouds return, together with those of other artists, at the end of Hänsel's documentary Nuages, lettres à mon fils. The entire film consists of cloud footage, "the biggest film screen in the world", while Catherine Deneuve's voice-over reads the letters she wrote about motherhood to her son. A meditative edit set to music by Michael Galasso provides a cloud revue: sunrises, lightening bolts and evening mists. The Old Masters' sombre skies remind her of the time she had to leave her four-week-old son to shoot a film. Ultimately, Hänsel's film clouds – whether violent or still – are as impressive as those of the artists she admires. (International Film Festival Rotterdam)