“Red Path”, interview with director Lotfi Achour

At the Locarno Film Festival, we had the opportunity to speak with Lotfi Achour, director of Red Path (Les Enfants Rouges), a film competing in the Cineasti del Presente section. The film, inspired by a tragic real-life event, delves into the psychological and emotional journey of a young boy facing unimaginable trauma.

A Journey Through Tragedy and Dreams

Red Path draws inspiration from a harrowing event in Tunisia in 2015, where jihadist groups attacked two adolescent shepherds, resulting in the death of one and the other being forced to carry his head back to his family. Lotfi Achour describes the film as not merely a recounting of terrorism but a deep exploration of the young boy’s inner world. “The film is not about terrorism; it’s about the inner journey of this 14-year-old child and how he has to refer to all the mechanisms of childhood, psychological, and dreamy, to face this tragedy and survive it,” he explains.

The Impact of the Real Event

Lotfi Achour was profoundly moved by the real-life event, which he felt was more than just a crime—it was a national trauma. “The crime is quite odious, not an ordinary crime, especially because it involved children,” he says. He highlights that this event was unprecedented in Tunisia, where such violence against children was unheard of. “The nature of the crime, asking a child to carry a head in a bag, almost refers to mythological figures,” Achour reflects. He believes this crime became a collective trauma, deeply affecting the Tunisian national consciousness.

Creating a Dreamlike Experience

The film’s dreamlike quality is central to its narrative approach. Lotfi Achour and his team aimed to blend realism with dreamlike elements to reflect the boy’s psychological state. “We wanted it to be the simplest possible and most natural possible… there are sequences that were realistic and then which became, as the writing went on, they shifted into a form of nihilism,” Achour describes.

Working with the Young Protagonist

Achour’s approach to working with the young actor was meticulous and compassionate. He invested nearly a year in preparation, including workshops and dialect training, to ensure the actor could connect with the role authentically. “The main actor, at 13 years old, lived very close to the reality depicted in the film… he had personal experiences that mirrored the film’s themes,” Lotfi Achour notes. Despite the intense demands of the role, Achour praises the actor’s professionalism and resilience. “He shot 41 days out of 42, 12 hours a day… he was very overwhelmed emotionally but managed to handle the role with great maturity.”

A Timely Message

As Red Path competes in the Cineasti del Presente section, Lotfi Achour hopes it will resonate on a global scale. He reflects on the film’s release amid ongoing global conflicts, particularly the plight of children in Gaza. “I hope that my film will be a small drop of water to draw attention to violence against children,” Achour says. He expresses a desire for the film to contribute to discussions about the broader implications of such violence, emphasizing that “when we attack children, it’s a whole generation that will be lost.”

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