Arles 2016 : Camarguais Western

Before the First World War, pioneers of silent film directed the first westerns in the Camargue. This incredible story, which turned the Rhône Delta into the set of many early 20th-century films, began in 1905, when cattle rancher Folco de Baroncelli attended a performance of Buffalo Bill’s “Wild West Show” in Paris. That inspired him to ask director Jean Durand to shoot a series of films—considered the earliest westerns—in the Camargue. The village of Saintes-Maries-de-la-Mer as well as the farmhands and cattle from Baroncelli’s ranch participated in many movies until the war broke out in 1914. When peace returned, so did film crews. The Camargue lent directors of adventure movies its natural setting, light and people to serve as extras. Through film screenings, posters, objects and photographs of sets, the exhibition takes a look back at this saga.