B U T T E R F L Y
SYNOPSIS
In the sea, a man swims.
As he does, memories come to the surface.
From his early childhood to his life as a man,
all his memories are linked to water.
Some are happy, some glorious, some traumatic.
Produced by the French companies Sacrebleu Productions & XBO Films, BUTTERFLY is an animated short film inspired by the life of the french swimming champion: Alfred Nakache.
Animated Paintings – 15′
Drama / History / Memories
Directed by: Florence Miailhe
Produced by: Ron Dyens, Luc Camilli
Original Score by: Pierre Oberkampf
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ALFRED NAKACHE
Alfred Nakache (1915–1983) was a Jewish French swimmer and water polo player, born in Constantine, French Algeria, who became one of France’s dominant pre‑war champions in freestyle, breaststroke, and relay events.
He represented France at the 1936 Berlin Olympic Games, finishing fourth in the 4×200‑meter freestyle relay, and went on to win more than a dozen French national titles and set a world record in the 200‑meter breaststroke in 1941.
In 1944, Nakache, his wife Paule, and their young daughter Annie were deported to Auschwitz because they were Jewish; his wife and child were murdered there shortly after arrival, while he survived forced labor and camp brutality.
In 1944, Nakache, his wife Paule, and their young daughter Annie were deported to Auschwitz because they were Jewish; his wife and child were murdered there shortly after arrival, while he survived forced labor and camp brutality.
Weighing around 42 kilos at liberation, he nonetheless returned to elite competition and, remarkably, swam for France again at the 1948 London Olympic Games, becoming one of only two known Holocaust survivors ever to compete in the Olympics after the war.
After retiring from competition, Nakache remained a symbol of resilience in French sport; swimming pools across France, including the main municipal pool in Toulouse, bear his name.
He was posthumously inducted into the International Swimming Hall of Fame and the International Jewish Sports Hall of Fame.
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BEHIND THE SCENES
FLORENCE MIAILHE
Florence Miailhe (b. 1956) is a French animation director, painter, and printmaker, and a graduate of the École Nationale Supérieure des Arts Décoratifs in Paris, where she specialized in engraving.
She began her career as a model maker and illustrator for the press while exhibiting drawings and engravings.
She began her career as a model maker and illustrator for the press while exhibiting drawings and engravings.
In 1991, she directed her first short film, Hammam, and has since developed a singular “film-painting” style, using paint, pastel, or sand animated directly under the camera with overlapping techniques.
Her short films have screened at major festivals in France and around the world, earning numerous awards and retrospectives.
She received the César Award for Best Short Film in 2002 for Au premier dimanche d’août (On the First Sunday in August) and a Special Mention in the Short Film Competition at Cannes in 2006 for Conte de quartier.
In 2015, the Annecy International Animation Film Festival honored her career with its prestigious Honorary Cristal and a retrospective of her work.
Alongside her filmmaking, Miailhe has taught at leading animation schools including Gobelins, ENSAD, and La Poudrière, mentoring a generation of animators.
Her debut feature, La Traversée (The Crossing) earned the Gan Foundation for Cinema Special Award and a Jury Special Mention at Annecy.
Her debut feature, La Traversée (The Crossing) earned the Gan Foundation for Cinema Special Award and a Jury Special Mention at Annecy.
RON DYENS
Ron Dyens is a French Academy Award® and Golden Globe winner for the animated feature Flow (2025). He is also an Academy Award® nominee for the animated short Madagascar, Travel Diary (2011).
In 1999, he founded Sacrebleu Productions, a Paris-based production company specializing in animated features and shorts with a strong international presence and critical acclaim.
Since then, he has produced over 100 short films, with more than 2,000 festival selections worldwide, winning numerous prestigious awards – including the Palme d’Or for Barking Island.
Since then, he has produced over 100 short films, with more than 2,000 festival selections worldwide, winning numerous prestigious awards – including the Palme d’Or for Barking Island.
Sacrebleu Productions moved into animated features with Long Way North (2015) – Audience Award at Annecy and 600,000 admissions in France.
Four films followed, including (awarded at BIAF 2020), My Sunny Maad (Jury Prize at Annecy 2021, César Award for Best Animated Feature and Golden Globe nominee) and Sirocco and the Kingdom of the Winds (Audience Award at Annecy 2023).
Four films followed, including (awarded at BIAF 2020), My Sunny Maad (Jury Prize at Annecy 2021, César Award for Best Animated Feature and Golden Globe nominee) and Sirocco and the Kingdom of the Winds (Audience Award at Annecy 2023).
Flow premiered at the 2024 Cannes Film Festival, grossed nearly 36 million dollars at the global box office, and earned around 80 awards worldwide, including the Golden Globe, César Award, and Academy Award® for Best Animated Feature.
