Aurélien Heilbronn is all ears

While musing on the virtue of learning, the noted wit Mark Twain once said:  “Cauliflower is nothing but cabbage with a college education." 

The quote appears in this intriguing film that opens with musings on the bland veg that’s great with cheese but isn’t really much more than the ghost of broccoli. 

The visceral film, which was produced by Heilbronn, Alaric Smeets and Paul Gazai of Ever Paris and premiered on Nowness, goes on to probe the significance of the cauliflower ear, from its immortalisation in classical art, to reactions the director has encountered in the world of mixed martial arts. 

Is a horribly mangled lughole a badge of honour that signifies the pursuit of greatness? The question is posed via elegant imagery, sculpture by Justin Ryan Kendall and a poetic conversation – scripted by Alaric Alexander Smeets  – between former UFC fighter Jess Liaudin and a young fighter whose quest for recognition leads him to self-mutilation. 

Aurélien Heilbronn commented: “The film was born out of my personal connection to the mixed martial arts world. As a practitioner myself I couldn't help but notice the diverse reactions and perceptions surrounding the wounded ear. I wanted to explore the dichotomy between modern perspectives that view it as a deformity and the historical significance it held among the revered pugilists of ancient Greece.”