"At the Crossroads of Memories: Michel Talata's Short Film on France's Colonial History and Harkis"

Michel Talata is a child of Harki. He grew up in Dreux, he still works there as a visual artist. He looked into the colonial history of France, particularly in Algeria. Patiently, he accumulated documents, research, to try to approach a page of the history of France still very painful for all the parts. With “At the crossroads of memories”, he continues his work of reconciliation. He has just presented his short film to the students of the media class at Louis-Armand College.

What is the origin of this film?

The film follows an order from the prefecture. It was produced in September 2022 for the 60th anniversary of the end of the Algerian war and accompanied an exhibition on the arrival of the Harkis in Dreux set up by the ONAC and the sub-prefecture.

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The whole film revolves around the history of colonization which intersects with that of Dreux, explain to us?

I realized that we lived in Dreux next to the royal chapel. A monument erected by the last king of the French, Louis Philippe, whose recumbent statue is still in this necropolis of Orléans. However, this king is the one who launched the colonization of Algeria in 1870.

“From this colonization also stems the history of the Harkis. It so happens that many Harkis families arrived in Dreux in 1964, following the Evian agreements and the end of the Algerian war.”

Michel Talata (empty)

It is singular that the history of this king and that of our families come together here, in Dreux. I started from this coincidence which is not necessarily one to build this film.

You have chosen to make an animated film. But, it is above all very symbolic, even esoteric and poetic, why this bias?

The idea is to evoke the colonial history of France which is still a very sensitive subject, very painful for all parties: The Algerians have suffered from colonization. At independence, the black feet had to leave everything and in particular leave their dead behind them, the Harkis were massacred by their revolutionary brothers and then suffered on their arrival in France which was not desired.

To avoid blunders, misunderstandings, I chose to treat this part of the story in the form of a very symbolic, very metaphorical animated film. It’s a way for me, but also for anyone watching the film, to take some distance. Art allows this.

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Behind this distancing, we feel the will to work on the reconciliation of memories. A subject that is close to your heart?

My goal for a very long time has been to bring my stone to the reconciliation of memories. It’s a difficult path that requires effort since you have to put yourself in the other person’s shoes, understand what they have suffered, recognize their own faults or shortcomings.

“To be harki, to be a child of harki, is to be between two camps. The harki identity emanates from this duality. This characteristic pushes us to try to reconcile memories. “

But this film is an invitation to all parties to take this path, once again difficult, but essential if we want to build a common memory for a peaceful society.

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What fate do you wish for this film?

I am not in a hurry. It was shown in September 2022. There, I show it to college students and I talk about it with them.

Of course, I would like it to be seen, especially for it to stimulate discussion and dialogue. But, you have to give him time, so that he can follow a step-by-step journey like the one I did since I discovered the role of Louis Philippe 15 years ago until the making of this film.

The meeting with the students. After 30 minutes of film, the college students get started: first questions about France’s colonial policy, the Algerian war, then we move on to more personal questions: “How does a visual artist decide to do a movie ? Did he experience racism because he was Harki’s son? » Michel Talata with delicacy, but without detours, recounts how “the silence of the fathers was difficult to live with for the children of Harkis”, how “these too heavy silences led to the teenagers’ anger”, how he “who was called Ahmed at home was Michel outside, and my green eyes that spared me the racial slurs, but I heard them for others”.
He also recounts his arrival at the Beaux-Arts “when I thought it was an inaccessible place for a child like me”. He tells them about his almost initiatory trip to Algeria in his family’s village.
Stories that touch middle school students whose identities are multiple and who build a common memory every day to live together in their class.