TOM MEDINA

By Tony GATLIF

FIRST HAND FILMS - as DISTR Theatrical, TV, DVD-video, VOD, Airline, SWITZERLAND

Comedy - Completed 2021


Festivals
& Awards

Cannes 2021
Sélection officielle
    • Year of production
    • 2021
    • Genres
    • Comedy, Action/Adventure, Drama
    • Countries
    • FRANCE
    • Languages
    • FRENCH
    • Duration
    • 100 mn
    • Director(s)
    • Tony GATLIF
    • Producer(s)
    • Delphine MANTOULET (Princes Production)
    • Synopsis
    • A Western without guns
      Tom Medina is sent by a juvenile court judge to the Camargue to Ulysses, a man with a big heart who is in tune with nature. Fascinated by bulls and horses and guided by visions, Tom learns the profession of nature guard at Ulysses' side. He no longer steals, is thirsty for knowledge and longs to become a different man. Upset by the unchanging hostility he faces, he fights for his destiny and crosses paths with activist Suzanne. TOM MEDINA is a feature film based on Tony Gatlif's life before he became a filmmaker, when he came to France by sea. Gatlif weaves his biography with metaphors, relocates the story to the present and portrays with great empathy how Tom never loses the dignity and strength for his life despite his homelessness. Set in the mystical landscape of the Camargue, the film thrives on images of nature, an intense soundtrack and lots of music. And the audience is released with a poetic ending that is a blessing for the heart. Tony Gatlif was born in 1948 in Algeria, which was then part of France. His father was Kabyle, his mother Romni. Both cultures strongly influenced him and inspired most of his films. In the early 1960s, Gatlif left Algeria and emigrated to France. Via acting and theatre, Gatlif finally arrived at film and presented his first screenplay with LA RAGE AU POING. In 1975 he shot LA TETE EN RUINE, his first work as a director. With LES PRINCES (1983), LATCHO DROM (1993) and GADJO DILO (1997), Tony Gatlif created a trilogy that earned much acclaim as a rare example of Roma self-representation in film. His film EXILS won the Director's Prize at the 2004 Cannes International Film Festival.