A Corps Battant / A Battling Body is the story of a fight. A one minute choreography to illustrate a whole life, a young life, suddenly hampered by Multiple Sclerosis (MS). A musical and poetic film to speak differently of the disease.

Interview with Writer/Director/Producer Laura Ghazal

Watch A Corps Battant / A Battling Body here:

Congratulations! Why did you make your film?

I created A Battling Body to raise awareness around Multiple Sclerosis, a widespread disease that is very little spoken about.

Imagine I’m a member of the audience. Why should I watch this film?

A Battling Body is a musical and poetic way to tackle this difficult subject. No medical references, only the language of a body. It only speaks about the sensation, it is a one minute metaphor for a whole life beaten by MS. Everybody is concerned, it can happen to anybody, anytime, we need to focus on it and struggle against it.

How do personal and universal themes work in your film?

My aunt died from this disease a few years ago. I wanted to honor her and participate in my way in this daily battle hundreds of thousands of families lead every day.

How have the script and film evolved over the course of their development and production?

It didn’t. Only the choreography was revisited to be both mainstream and very technical in terms of contemporary dance.

What type of feedback have you received so far?

I am glad that all the feedback we received was so emotional and positive. Doctors, Patients, Family, strangers, all seem to have accepted the message the way I translated it.

What are you looking to achieve by having your film more visible on www.wearemovingstories.com?

I want to raise awareness as much as possible. Each broadcast is an opportunity to reach new people. Thank you for helping me to share this message.

Who do you need to come on board (producers, sales agents, buyers, distributors, film festival directors, journalists) to amplify this film’s message?

Journalists are absolutely key to spreading the message. We don’t hear enough about MS. I do not understand why more people do not know that in France it is the second cause of disability in 25-40 year olds.

What type of impact and/or reception would you like this film to have?

As I said, i would like this film to be broadcast as much as possible to encourage fund raising and to finance research and help for patients.

What’s a key question that will help spark a debate or begin a conversation about this film?

Why did you choose a dancer to talk about MS ?

Interview: October 2016

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We Are Moving Stories embraces new voices in drama, documentary, animation, TV, web series and music video. If you have just made a film - we'd love to hear from you. Or if you know a filmmaker - can you recommend us? More info: Carmela

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A BATTLING BODY

Length: 1’30

Director: Laura Ghazal

Producer: Laura Ghazal

Writer: Laura Ghazal

About the writer, director and producer:

Laura Ghazal is a 33 years old screenwriter and filmmaker. After a double degree in political Science at Sciences Po and Communications at La Sorbonne, she began her professional career in Marketing. But quickly her passion for writing and directing took over. After training at the ESRA French School, she embarked on the sets as assistant achievement and in 2011 founded her own production company, We See production. In parallel to corporate projects, she writes short films and develops more personal projects such as A Battling Body.

Key cast: Dancer : Laurence Vasselin

Looking for (producers, sales agents, buyers, distributors, film festival directors, journalists): YES !

Made in association with: all the crowdfunding contributors and a wonderful professional team of volunteers

Release date: May, 2016