Lionel operates a commuter train in Paris, where he lives with his daughter, Josephine. Their life together is simple and blissful, as they are content with each other’s company. While Lionel, a widower, is reaching the age of retirement, Josephine is making her way into the adult world as a university student. The caring father begins to realise that his child is no longer a child, and that the dynamic between them is bound to change when Josephine’s bond with their neighbour Noé deepens. Inspired by the relationship between her mother and maternal grandfather, Claire Denis takes the timeless father-and-daughter story of Yasujiro Ozu’s Late Spring to modern-day Paris. Accompanied by rock band Tindersticks’ childlike musical score, the gentle beauty of 35 Shots of Rum radiates like the warmth of the sun.

The screening on 3 December will be followed by a talk in English with film scholar Dr Timmy Chih-Ting Chen, artist Krystle Leong, and M+ Assistant Curator of Moving Image Francisco Lo. The talk will focus on the sound design and music of Claire Denis’s films. Leong will also perform re-interpretations of Tindersticks's film scores.

Claire Denis (b. 1946, France) began her career working on set in Dusan Makavejev's Sweet Movie (1974). Her years working alongside Wim Wenders and Jim Jarmusch were crucial to her growth as a filmmaker before she directed her debut Chocolat (1988). Her next films I Can’t Sleep (1994) and Nénette et Boni (1996) interweave narratives inspired by the urban culture of Paris. Denis’s elliptical narrative and visual style received widespread acclaim with Beau Travail (1999) while Trouble Every Day (2001) made a shocking presentation in which Denis, regarded as an arthouse director, turned to the horror genre. The 2000s were significant for her career, which saw the release of Friday Night (2002), 35 Shots of Rum (2008), and White Material (2009). In 2022, Both Sides of the Blade and Stars at Noon won prizes at the Berlinale and Cannes respectively. Working closely with her long-time collaborators, such as cinematographer Agnès Godard and the rock band Tindersticks, Denis has contributed a diverse body of work to contemporary cinema.