MAY DAY, le nouveau film de Mai Hua et Jerry Hyde

Hello, MAY DAY is my 3rd film after Les Rivières, and Make Me a Man. It is at the same time a documentary, a poem and a vision. My name is MAI HUA, I am an artist and documentarian. 8 years ago I came to Kiss Kiss Bank Bank for my first film Les Rivières. There were 617 contributors and we raised nearly 30,000 euros. I’m so grateful, especially as the film became a huge success, seen by nearly 100,000 people in 82 countries, and it still continues to grow as a collective adventure. The collective is precisely the theme of this new film, MAY DAY, for which I need you again. What is MAY DAY about? We take you on an immersive 14-day therapeutic retreat, with 12 participants cut off from the world, in the full wildness of nature, without electricity, telephone, or hot water. Together, they will work on their fears, their traumas, their history. Through talking circles, intense exercises, rituals, poetry, altered states of consciousness... they will connect to themselves, to others, to nature and transform themselves. All this is made possible thanks to their courage, the strength of the group and the culture of care that is practiced there. What is our intention as an author? Our desire is to offer you a new vision, both honest and dreamlike, far from superheroes and gurus, where on the contrary, everyone does something with their pain, cultivating kindness and taking care of others. A place where the circle heals through the resonances it creates. Here are some feedback from test screenings: “So much love”, “It moves something inside me”, “it heals me”, “I’ve never seen anything like that”, “I discussed it all night with my friend”, the most unexpected being “I’ll see how to get it passed at the National Assembly!”.... We are really looking forward to showing you May Day. Come with us to enlarge the circle, and be the first to see May Day.

Who are we? MAI HUA: Director, writer, editor, producer, caregiver I am a French artist and director of Vietnamese origin, based in Paris. My life's quest: love. My first feature-length documentary, LES RIVIÈRES, a five-year investigation into my family line of women, was distributed in 2019 in total independence. It has been seen in 82 countries, reaching a very wide audience as well as critics. JERRY HYDE: Co-director, writer, artistic director, therapist JERRY is a psychotherapist and author of 5 books, based in London. He is also my husband and collaborator. After a career in the arts, he has been the pioneer of what is now known as "Gonzo therapy" for the last three decades. In 2021, we released our first film collaboration: MAKE ME A MAN. Distributed by Fédération Entertainment and described by Le Monde as "Powerful and poetic", the film is an exploration of Jerry's men's groups who have chosen vulnerability over patriarchal domination. PAUL CARLIN: Editor For this complex story with its diverse palette of characters, situations and emotions, I had the joy and honour of working with the talented and experienced Paul Carlin, editor for 30 years in London. His incredible sensitivity and deep understanding of storytelling have earned him nominations for the Oscars, Berlin, and Telluride. DUNCAN RUSSELL @Halo: Color grading Duncan is one of the best colourists in Great Britain. His sense of colour had already changed everything for Make Me a Man. He told me "this film needs more love". His agency, Halo, based in London, has won the award for the best post-production agency over the last 5 years. LUKE PICKERING @ChurchStudio: Sound mixer We wanted a sound experience that was enveloping and magical. It required technical expertise, a true artistic soul. Luke works in music, more than in cinema. His studio The Church (which is literally in a church) has given birth to some of the greatest music ever made - Adele, U2, Bob Dylan, Radiohead, Annie Lennox to name just a few. NOEL LANGLEY: Composer and musician You most likely won’t have heard of Noel Langley but you will have heard him – you know that fanfare on the James Bond theme? Yeah, that’s Noel, as well as touring and recording with some of the greatest artists of all time He has composed for us a unique soundtrack, a mix that is at once jazz, punk and medieval. A mystical experience in itself, improvised live during the, an organic, spontaneous collaboration with multi-instrumentalist Joe Caswell, a true spirit of nature if there ever was one who has been living alone in the forest for over ten years. SIAN O'GORMAN: Composer and singer You know her enchanting voice in her group of contemporary witches, NYX, and also as the composer for our 2nd film, Make Me a Man. For May Day, she created a chorus of angelic voices from another world. YOICHI KAMIMURA: sound artist Field Recorder, Yoichi travels the world to record the sounds of humans and nature. He has received numerous awards as an artist. For May Day, he brings us a corpus mixing Icelandic gongs, the Amazonian jungle, and of course, the heart of a century-old Japanese cedar. NICOLAS GRISEL: videographer & JOHANN HEMMEN: sound recordist I wanted a small and very experienced team so that the filming would be as discreet as possible during the retreat. Nicolas and Johann from Brut were recommended to me, for their sensitivity and professionalism. Nothing would have been possible without them. STUART MACK: photographer Stuart is a remarkably sensitive photographer, whose unique talent lies in his ability to blend effortlessly into any group setting. With a quiet presence, he captures portraits that are both deeply empathetic and artistically compelling, offering a rare and intimate glimpse into his subjects' emotions. MELANIE VAZEUX: Editorial strategist, marketing and distribution I need support to propel the film to its audience. Mélanie's vision and energy will be treasures for MAY DAY.