“Free Spirits”

Free Spirits – A Manifesto for a Different Approach to Support

"Les Esprits libres" is the third installment of a trilogy on caring for people with Alzheimer's disease, produced in 2025 with the same team of caregivers.

“A question arose: What would a place look like where we’d want to grow old, or see our parents or grandparents grow old? Very quickly, we envisioned an open, intergenerational space—and, above all, one without white coats.”

We also wanted a creative environment that could bring people together around a shared project. That’s when we thought of theater. It may seem simple: an open house, caregivers without white coats, dances every night, meals we prepare and share together, children playing… All of this resembles “ordinary life,” and yet it’s a far cry from how most nursing homes are organized today.

So the film tells this story: an experience that should be ordinary but which, given the current state of healthcare in France, is, strictly speaking, “extraordinary.” It offers multiple layers of interpretation. You can watch it as a story, a tale, filled with surprising, funny, and moving characters who embark on a wild adventure. But you can also see it as a proposal for a profound transformation of the current system of care for people with Alzheimer’s disease. A film whose goal is to convey a political message that can be summed up as follows: a different kind of care is possible.”

Bertrand Hagenmüller, director.

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