What makes movies memorable? The key element is almost always memorable characters, such as Dirty Harry, Dorothy, E.T., and Goldfinger. Even the most plot-driven action films—like RAIDERS OF THE LOST ARK and THE GODFATHER—almost always include characters that we can’t forget. In feature films directors have plenty of time for character development. But if you have only 60 seconds, getting the audience to understand and care about a character becomes daunting. And yet it is possible, as Brice Veneziano powerfully demonstrates in “Mémoire de nos Pairs”  (“Memory of our Peers”). While the filmmaker employs a number of techniques, the key is his use of a foil character.

In the first half of his movie, Veneziano introduces the protagonist played by Sarah Bertholon. A dramatic sound cue causes the character to remember the horror of the Bataclan massacre (Paris, 2015). At that point, the movie might have ended, but to deepen the protagonist’s emotional state, Veneziano brings in a foil character. Classically, a foil character differs from the main character in ways to bring into focus the protagonist’s personality and attitude. In this case, the foil is a passerby whose unawareness of the significance of the place contrasts with—and thereby magnifies— the protagonist’s grief. This key secondary role is played by actor Steven Eynius.

“Mémoire de nos Pairs” is a finalist in Mobile Film Festival 2018, the competition’s 14th year, produced in partnership with the United Nations Human Rights Office and YouTube Creators for Change.  Mobile Film Festival concept is based on three simple rules: 1 mobile, 1 minute, 1 film. To learn more about the festival visit their website and follow them on Twitter.

“Mémoire de nos Pairs” has been chosen by the editors of Mobile Movie Making Magazine as a Mobile Movie of the Week.