Monsieur Contraste

Filmed during the tumultuous summer and fall of 2011, Monsieur Contraste follows the adventures of Jean-Christian Rostagni, a French photographer living in the American South who would rather stay true to the purity of his art than satisfy what he sees as the demons of marketing. When his wife gives him one year to make it as an artist or get a real job, he lands a gallery show that could be his last chance.

Monsieur Contraste explores the work and the vision of a complex artist who has spent the last four decades making photography his religion.  We see what it takes to create ambitious art, the process and its toll, physically and financially, on an entire family.

The documentary was filmed on location in North Carolina, Washington DC and in New York City during the apex of the Occupy Movement.