Ne Change Rien

Introduction by Pedro Costa

Costa’s second nonfiction work about an artist’s creative process (after Where Does Your Hidden Smile Lie?), this shimmering, casually seductive portrait of Jeanne Balibar follows the singer as she and her band rehearse new songs, record better-honed performances, and move on and off the stage. Ne Change Rien is the only one of Costa’s digital films to be shot in black and white, and in its luminous, precise compositions, light and shadow play off each other like the dominant and counter melodies in a song. What’s most striking about the movie, though, is Costa’s delicate feeling for the start-stop, rewinding rhythms of jam sessions, recording sessions, and rehearsals, and the way a few musical phrases—listen for the haunting chorus of “Peine Perdue”—echo throughout the movie with a quiet, suggestive force. An NYFF47 selection.