A house beside a lake in an idyllic forest location: children between seven and fourteen sit around the dining table, but instead of mum and dad, they call for Mr. and Mrs. Wagner and Mr. Gerecke. For the time being, these youth workers are the primary caregivers for the children, stepping in as parents for each of life’s milestones, shift after shift. They live together with the children in residential homes for a few years at a time in a family-like structure, including everything that goes along with it: cooking, washing, shopping, doing homework, waiting in doctors’ offices, playing video games, consoling and reading bedtime stories. And above all, one thing: being a role model. The world outside sees this place as a dumping ground, for the children it’s the first time in a long time that they’ve been able to build trust, be kids and experience the magic of a home.

A film about the superpower of raising children amidst bureaucracy and youth services, about the value of family and the unconditional desire to come home.

An unidentified protagonist looks at old photographs from the family album. Scenes on the beach, on vacation. Scenes with his siblings on the couch. Innocent poses, laughter.

In contrast, the narrator describes memories of his and his siblings' emotional and physical abuse at the hands of his mother. Gradually, the social and personal dynamics behind the system of violence are revealed and the suffering of the victims, who oscillate between pain, guilt and grief lasting into adulthood, is described.

Le Lignon: a long building with two towers. Below it, the Rhone River and its forest, a habitat for many birds. Two microcosms that influence and inspire each other. From their windows, the inhabitants are watching the woods. What do they see?

The film shows the human need for closeness to the animals that surround us and the ambivalent relationship between humans and nature.

During the Chris Marker exhibition at the Cinémathèque Française, my cousin Jean-Henri recognised himself in “La Jetée”.

Shot from behind, the photograph of him and his parents on the observation deck at Orly Airport was the fifth shot of the film. If it was him, he was the hero of the film as a child. Our whole family recognised them, and I was drawn into his vision and the secret paths it opened up of our family history and the history of those images. It was Orly Airport that we had arrived at from Algeria in 1962. As for Marker...

The Vagabond's Garden opens with an evocative gaze on an empty country road, winding like a river into the distance. In search of a sense of belonging for nomadic people in Germany, I embark on a journey through their stories. I follow four semi-nomadic women and shed light on their ways of life. Magdalena, a journeywoman, plans to settle as a farmer after almost four years of travelling. Will she find peace in a sedentary life after this journey of freedom? Johanna, an activist, lives in a converted truck and constantly moves between caravan sites. The film explores her sense of home in constant motion. I also accompany the community of Jenische women, who move seasonally from place to place. Elwera, a former high wire artist, and her granddaughter Ghislaine strive to sustain their market life. In The Vagabond's Garden, they appear on camera for the first time, making their political struggle for recognition visible.

The film illuminates the potential of nomadism. Poetic reflections paint a picture of wanderers largely unknown to public consciousness. Can a “life on the move” with minimal possessions offer a model for our future?