Maya, Donne-Moi Un Titre director Michel Gondry’s collaboration with his daughter is a mini triumph of hand crafted DIY filmmaking. Playing at Fantasia Film Festival 2025.
Maya, Donne-Moi Un Titre (Maya, Give me a Title) is as much at the heart of director Michel Gondry’s ethos as an artist as it is a summation of his career. The film is a free association collection of short “stories”. A mish-mash that came out of his daughter’s curiosity about animation and storytelling. As Maya tells these various stories, we, like Gondry, are free to see the limitless possibilities of childhood playtime. When rules and boundaries were not set for us. It is a beautiful reminder of the creative ether where Gondry works best, unencumbered by things like studios, story, or budgetary concerns.
Through Maya and Michel, we get a glimpse of complete artistic freedom and the simple pleasures it brings. This isn’t perfectly beautiful. The imperfections and roughness are the artistic beauty. It is wonderful how Gondry has continued to move away from expensive techniques, getting to the point where it is just himself and his daughter telling stories to amuse themselves. Art for art’s sake.
The joy that erupts from this can only be experienced and not really described or even critiqued. Someone would have to be truly rotten to be dour about the epic tale of the Ketchup bottle in the sea, or Maya and the Fake Cops, or even Maya not watching to do animation anymore. The one that that can be sure is that Maya, Donne-Moi Un Titre (Maya, Give me a Title) will put a smile on your face no matter what your age.