Rather than do a whole spiel about how what is “lost” never goes unfound in this day and age so long as a copy does, in fact, exist, I’ll get to the exciting stuff: Jean-Luc Godard‘s first narrative short (and second film work overall), 1955’s Une femme coquette, has been uploaded to YouTube after decades and decades of being unavailable, to the extent that certain sources would list it as entirely lost. To appreciate its appearance, consider the fact that folks at the AV Club, who somewhat recently did a terrific rundown of its history, had learned that “the only known 16mm print [rests in] a national film archive in Europe, where it was being stored unlisted for a private owner, to be loaned out only with the personal permission of Jean-Luc Godard himself.”
But yes, somehow, Une femme coquette is on YouTube, and the enterprising uploader — here’s something I’m going to say very quietly so they don’t hear me: you might want to look at what else they’ve got on their channel — has even added English subtitles to it. It’s very short, it’s very entertaining — in part because of an amateurish streak running through — and lays seeds of the playfulness and mischievous nature that Godard has maintained 60 years hence. Oh, and, given the circumstances of its non-exhibition, this may not be up for very long. What do you need, a roadmap?
Watch it below: