A retrospective of Alain Gomis's films is set to run from October 7 to 20, 2026, at the Centre Pompidou in Paris. This event highlights Gomis's career, which combines French and African influences with themes of politics, poetry, and personal expression. Despite receiving several prestigious awards, Gomis remains relatively unknown to the general public. He has been honored with the public prize in 2007 at the Entrevues festival in Belfort for Andalucía, the Yennenga Golden Stallion at the Panafrican Film and Television Festival of Ouagadougou, the Jury Grand Prize at the Berlinale for Félicité in 2017, and the Vigo d'honneur 2026 for his entire body of work. Since 2018, Gomis has directed the Yennenga Center in Dakar, an institution that has also produced some of his films. Gomis's approach to filmmaking has evolved significantly over the years. Initially, he relied on detailed shooting scripts, shaped by his film studies degree at the University of Paris 1 Pantheon-Sorbonne. However, he has shifted toward a more spontaneous method, emphasizing feelings and the immediacy of the moment. He favors long shots that allow him to compose the shooting script "from within" during the scene itself, rather than strictly following a prewritten plan. Céline Bozon, a cinematographer, has had a major influence on Gomis's recent films, particularly through her innovative techniques, such as using a headset to receive audio feedback during filming. Gomis believes that his films are rooted in the present, aiming to transport viewers to a sense of immediacy regardless of when the films were made. He views cinema as an art of the present, where time is not a measured space but something that pulls viewers out of real time. Gomis's treatment of love scenes is notable for its sincerity and lack of ulterior motives, emphasizing tenderness and mutual understanding. He believes that cinema is inherently generous and that the audience plays a crucial role in connecting different elements of the film, such as shots, information, sound, and image. This philosophy is reflected in his unexpected choices, such as the recurring image of a poppy field in Aujourd'hui, which he captured spontaneously rather than planning it in advance. Gomis's approach is often compared to that of Jean-Luc Godard, who also valued spontaneous visions. He draws parallels between his methods and those of Cézanne and Thelonious Monk, who emphasized non-intervention and the importance of sensation. Gomis believes that creators can become obstacles to their own feelings and that art should focus on resonance, void, juxtaposition, and the transitions between elements.