After Etre et Avoir received so many awards and was met with such fanfare, the teacher, Georges Lopez, sued the producer for compensation. Contractually he and the students were paid a set amount of money (low-budget documentary prices), however Lopez did promotional tours and thought he deserved a larger share after the film's success. The French judge did not rule in his favour.
Chosen by "Telerama" (France) as one of the 10 best pictures of 2002 (#05)
Culled from 60 hours' worth of footage recorded over a period of 10 weeks.