126 - PIAFF 2026 : La ferme de Papi (Grandpa’s Farm) – The Meaning of the legacy.
- Clément Martin
- Feb 5
- 3 min read
Updated: Feb 9
The PIAFF festival always ends with the joy of reuniting with friends in the animation world and sharing the wonderful discoveries the festival brings each year.
We return to our daily lives with heads full of memories, encounters, and remarkable films. Today, GAMCA Animation wants to tell you about "La ferme de Papi" (Grandpa’s Farm), a student film made in 2025. This film is remarkable, and here’s why!
La ferme de Papi (Grandpa’s Farm) – Student film directed by Elise Coupet – PIKTURA, School of Image – 2025
Elise Coupet : Direction, animation, layout, skeletal animation
Yseult Duval : Character design, textures, 3D modeling of characters, objects, and sets
Yves Dubois : Skeletal animation, visual effects, lighting, compositing, script
Matthis Acker : Environment modeling, rendering, compositing
Anaïs Mulier : Modeling, animation
Camille Majorczyk : Painting, modeling
The PIKTURA School
Since 2003, PIKTURA, located in Roubaix and Tourcoing, has been training students for innovative and in-demand careers in the global video game and animation industries, as well as in other fields such as architecture, health, and textiles. The school offers programs in 2D and 3D animation, video games, and illustration. Six students from this school created this film.
The short film: 5 images for a beautiful metaphor of succession
The film is made in 3D using an elaborate technique that showcases the students' skills. From character and set design to animation and lighting, the students demonstrate mastery of their craft. However, technical quality alone is not enough to give a film its soul.
Elise Coupet, the director, is the daughter and granddaughter of farmers. She chose a different path from her parents and will not take over the family farm. She felt the need to express her roots in the agricultural world, which is currently facing many challenges, through this film.
For once, we will reveal the film’s progression through 5 images, as the metaphor it presents is so successful.
A grandfather tends to his farm before quietly disappearing behind a row of corn.
The farm begins to slowly deteriorate, piece by piece, as the granddaughter’s smile fades and the music stops.
The granddaughter explores the farm and finds her grandfather’s boots.
The granddaughter puts on her grandfather’s oversized boots and starts working, as the house stops deteriorating, slowly repairs itself, and the music resumes.
Music as a character in the film
Music and sound always play a crucial role in film. The film’s emotional depth is amplified here by Maurice Ravel’s 'Pavane pour une infante défunte' (1899), performed in its orchestral version(1). The piece’s serene, melancholic rhythm mirrors the film’s contemplative tone, while its pauses and resumptions underscore the narrative’s themes of loss and renewal.The film team offers us an encouraging example of "praxis du cinéma". (2)
The meaning of the legacy
The film addresses the beautiful subject of transmission and the weight that an inheritance can represent. Often superficially presented by some as an "unfair" blessing that falls from the sky, inheritance actually involves responsibilities, investment, respect, skills, and learning—along with the regret that we can only question the departed for inner answers. The film treats this subject with gentleness, simplicity, and metaphorical finesse.
Elise Coupet does not take over her parents’ and grandparents’ farm, but with her team, she delivers this film that invites us to reflect on the succession of our elders when they disappear, with its burdens... and its joys.
(1) You can listen to "Pavane pour une infante défunte" (1899) in its orchestral version at https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=2_c8JRCKq1A
(2) Read "Une praxis du cinéma" by Noël Burch, Folio essais collection, 1969. The book explores cinematic language through a formal analysis of the relationships between off-screen space, editing continuity, and off-screen areas.
Explore an excerpt here (in french) https://www.cineclubdecaen.com/analyse/livres/burchunepraxisducinema.htm
Or interesting comments (in french) http://repertoire-critiques.cinematheque.fr/fiche_auteur.php?objId=122&display=print
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