Les tout petits is the first film directed by Henry Houry in which he also plays the role of Jean de Mareuil. This nitrate print, enhanced by stencil colourisation, is a unique element in the collection of the Cinématheque française. The 4K restoration allows us to rediscover this poignant story whose protagonists are two young children, orphaned upon the brutal loss of their parents in a train accident. Next to the fictional scenes, footage of a real-life railway disaster appears. One surmises that in his editing, Henry Houry incorporated footage filmed after the collision between two trains in Melun in November 1913, a significant accident at the time that coincided with the year the film was shot.

Noémie Jean