The French environmental documentary entitled Demain (Tomorrow) will be shown at the French Cultural Centre (L’espace) on March 31. It is one of eight documentaries the centre will screen this month in honour of several international environmental days. 

Tomorrow directors Melanie Laurent and Cyril Dion listen to an interviewee. Photo m.imdb.com

Tomorrow is made by Melanie Laurent and Cyril Dion. After the journal Nature announced the possible extinction of a part of mankind before the end of the 21st century, the two directors, together with a team of four people, carried out an investigation in 10 different countries to figure out what may lead to this disaster and above all how to avoid it.

During their journey, they met the pioneers who are re-inventing agriculture, energy, economics, democracy and education. By exploring concrete and positive actions which are already working, they began to figure out what could be tomorrow’s world.

Laurent has participated in more than 40 feature films, including Quentin Tarantino’s Inglorious Basterds, Billie August’s Night Train To Lisbon, Mike Mills’s Beginners and Philippe Lioret’s Je vais bien ne t’en fais pas (Don’t Worry, I’m Fine). 

She was awarded a César award for best young actress in Don’t Worry, I’m Fine in 2006. She shot four movies, two short films and two full-length feature films. Her second, Respire, adapted from the novel by Anne-Sophie Brasme, was presented at Cannes film festival 2014.

Dion had a very short carreer as an actor. He founded the Colibris movement which he ran until July 2013 and he is still its spokesman and a member of the board council. Meanwhile, he is co-founder of the Kaizen magazine and the Domaine du Possible series for Actes Sud - a French publisher. He was a producer executive with Local Solutions ForaA Global Disorder documentary by Colline Serreau.

The documentary was screened on March 5 to open the Month of Environmental Documentary which is being held by L’espace on to celebrate environmental days in March. They days are International Day of Forests on March 21; World Water Day on March 22 and World Meteorological Day on March 23.

The other documentaries include French films En quête de sens (A Quest for Meaning); Il était une forêt (Once Upon A Forest); Le mystère du dauphin rose (The Mystery of the Pink Dolphin) and L’éveil de la permaculture (The Awakening of Permaculture). Vietnamese film Đất Đai Thuộc Về Ai (Who Owns Land) and Thai film The Salt of The Earth also are shown at the month.

Who Owns Land was made by Đoàn Hồng Lê in 2009 and has been presented at more than 10 international film festivals. Lê was born in 1974 and studied Language Sciences at Đà Nẵng University. She participated in a master class of Direct Cinema Varan workshop in 2004 and 2009.

"The Salt of The Earth is a fruit of co-operation between Thailand and France," said Nguyễn Ngọc Quang Toàn, a staff member at L’espace’s Audiovisual Room. "Thailand and Việt Nam are similar and Thailand has environmental problems. We are really concerned about the problem in Thailand because it could happen in Việt Nam".

The film The Salt of The Earth will be shown at 6.30pm on March 22.— VNS