Painter on very large canvases of 2 meters, Ariel Neo has exhibited in the United Kingdom, Belgium and Paris. A photographer, she is also a director of clips for the Finistère group Lunis (Laurène et Louis). The one who held an equestrian center in Locronan (29) “Les écuries Koat ar Menez” found the plastic arts after an accident which deprives her of riding today. And a new career as a director, self-taught as for painting.
His short films have been awarded several times around the world: Ariel Neo mixes painting, film, animals and themes around the future of man and nature in his work.. Whether it’s with a wolf in the snow (Fire within), under the ice of a lake (Under the ice) with horses between Douarnenez bay and Sainte-Barbe chapel in Faouët (Rain slide) or with this man who gets lost in a useless race in the middle of a dying nature pursued by the figure of a horseman of the apocalypse (Firefalls). His latest project “Ciels de Légendes” is a look at Brittany, seen by an eagle.
“Legendary Skies”, whose filming ends in October 2022, will be a 12-minute short film in Breton (subtitled in French) in which the actress and TV presenter Goulwena an Henaff will be the soul of an eagle and tell the story. Inspired by a news item: the true story of Dana, a bald eagle from the Aquashow in Audierne who got lost for 3 weeks in 2019 as far as Loiret, 600km from Brittany, “Ciels de Légendes” allows you to fly over the region and pays tribute to the beauty of Breton nature to encourage people to preserve it, but also to the richness of its traditional and contemporary culture. They are Bachka, a female eagle and another Urgo raptor who play the role of Dana, accustomed to Aquashow shows but too shy to be a movie star! The short will be accompanied by a 52-minute behind-the-scenes documentary.
The musical choice of the director: Youn Kamm
The filming took place with the “Vol en scène” company (specialist in bird films) in unusual and magnificent places such as the spiers of the cathedral of Quimper with contemporary dancers, aboard the Corentin (the Lougre de l’ Odet) in the bay of Concarneau, but also in Belle-Île (56) with trumpeter and singer Youn Kamm, his musicians and singer Morwenn Le Normand who the director asked at the end of September – in an incredible shoot at nightfall and in rough seas – to perform “Kalon skorn” by Youn Kamm on the rocks of Port-Coton.
Ariel Neo’s favorite corner of Brittany: Huelgoat
The magic and atmosphere of chaos of Huelgoat is the point of attraction of Ariel Neo born in Saint-Brieuc (22), who grew up in Locronan and lives in Briec (29). She shot part of each of her short films there. For “Legendary skies”, she invited dancers from the Celtic circle of Kerfeuteun in Quimper Eostiged ar Stangala to this legendary forest. But Ariel Neo also ran two horses on the wild coast at Clohars-Carnoët (29) with rider Amandine Fournier or painted his own canvases at Ploumanac’h (22) on the pink granite coast.
– Ariel Neo
“Legendary skies” is a self-funded project. But the original photos and paintings of Ariel Neo will be offered for sale to finance it in part. Funding can also be provided by companies or cultural patronage. Ariel Neo is already working on the sequel with Rodolphe, a seagull hero of a trip where he jumps out of a hot air balloon with an on-board camera. A first for this kind of animal. A photo exhibition of the filming scenes of “Skies of legends” is visible in the parking lot of the Capucins beach and on the wall of the Pierre-Le-Lec school until the end of 2022 in Audierne (29).