Video Tour of the Familistère

A series of short films (2-4 min) to see the Familistère in a whole new light.

The Familistère de Guise’s official App.

The Familistère at Guise, or the Social Palace, is a vast collective living complex built in the XIXth century for the workers at the foundry that produced the famous “Godin” iron stoves. It remains one of the most remarkable examples of social experiments in the industrial world, a working utopia of hitherto unseen proportions.

The Familistère is still inhabited. Today, it’s been completely renovated. It is classified as an historical monument and is quite an original type of “Musée de France” (French Museum).

The application Video Tour of the Familistère is a poetic and historical tour through the astonishing “Social Palace”.

It is comprised of 22 short, 2-4 minute films, which allow one to view both the present and past, the visible and the invisible of the site, all at the same time. The application is not a simple tour guide; rather, it suggests the “less travelled paths” to the visitor of this great Familistère adventure.

The films approach all aspects of the Familistère: its architecture, industry, social experiment, and daily life with insight and a lively outlook; such as “Daily Utopia”, “Factory Grounds”, “A Flow of Molten Metal”, “The Hut and the Palace”, “A Model Day Care Center”, “The Godin Monument”…

These films were created especially for use on smartphones and tablets.

They were directed in French, English and Dutch. According to the user’s choice, one of the three actresses will become their guide and narrate the films in her mother tongue.

The films are shown in each language with or without sub-titles, according to the user’s preference.

It’s certainly possible to use this application away from the Familistère, and to view these films at home. But it’s even better to see them on site! The viewing then becomes an incredible experience of the place itself. The application suggests an 8-stage walking tour through the site. Each stage proposes one or several different “view-points” about the Familistère and its gardens. And each view point has a corresponding film, which “augments” the observed reality, by showing the invisible side of things.

The application is for all audiences.

The application functions on smartphones and tablets.

The films were produced by the Familistère de Guise and AnimaViva Productions. They were written and directed by Christian Boustani and Gilles Boustani in 2012, 2018 and 2021.

The application “A video tour of the Familistère de Guise” was created thanks to the support of the Department of Aisne and the French government (FNADT).