Inspired by film directors such as Bresson and Buñuel, Aliocha Allard studied cinema in Paris and later in New York City before directing his first fiction short film, La conduite de la Raison (selected at the Directors’ Fortnight of the Cannes Film Festival). He was subsequently chosen for residencies at TIFF Talent Lab in Toronto, the Berlinale, and Reykjavík. Aliocha wrote and directed his second fiction short film, Bake a Cake (awarded the Grand Prix at the Milan Film Festival) along with two short documentaries, The Wrong Note and Catedral (selected in over 40 international film festivals). Additionally, as an enthusiast of classical and jazz music, he produced an educational podcast series in 15 episodes (Tchaikovsky, Bartók, Duke Ellington, etc.) on the history of music from a philosophical perspective. Having served as screenwriting professor at the École Supérieure de Réalisation Audiovisuelle (ESRA), Aliocha teaches screenwriting at the CineStudio School of Film and Media in Paris since 2018. He is currently developing his first feature film script, Racquet Club.

Racquet Club — In the Californian desert, Nelda, grieving her officer husband, joins a support group led by the charismatic Lita at the historic Racquet Club. The group’s empathy transforms into a dark allegiance, revealing Lita’s manipulative control. Nelda leads a rebellion, exposing Lita’s dark past.