M takes us from the “Arab” countries during the “Revolutions” to Trump’s America, and post-Covid France and explores personal narratives of gender from a reverse perspective; a female gaze on a young generation of men (assigned as such at birth) who are sowing trouble in gender and regenerating the definitions of contemporary masculinity
By introducing an important element of empathy, the aim is to highlight – in a spirit of resistance – the universality of these identity struggles played out in every hemisphere, and of introducing theses singular, yet shared experiences, and the assertive self-reinvention of these men into the collective imagination.
At a time when sexism and gender discrimination are increasing worldwide, fueled by the reaffirmation of nationalist and extremist sentiments, this series celebrates openness, adaptability and audacity. It is also a call for empathy, acceptance, and freedom.
The trilogy features over one hundred images which, through portraits and natural settings, testify to the experience of this journey and offer a transversal, cross-cultural, and multi-ethnic perspective on one of the major societal issues of the 21st century.
The trilogy brings together three series successively produced from 2012 to 2023:
– Mectoub (2012–2016): Morocco, Algeria, Tunisia, Egypt, Palestine, Lebanon, and Jordan
– Plan Américain (2017–2019): 13 U.S. states — Washington, Oregon, California, New York, Georgia, Tennessee, New Mexico, Mississippi, Louisiana, Arizona, Texas, Michigan, and Illinois
– La Disparition de James Bond (2022–2023): France — Arles, Montpellier, Marseille, Lille, Roubaix, Dunkirk, Brest, Bordeaux, and Nantes

Scarlett Coten is a French photographer renowned for her exploration of themes such as identity, gender, and intimacy, through her intimate portraits that challenge stereotypes and cultural expectations.
Her artistic practice favors an immersive, documentary approach enriched by a fictional dimension inspired by cinema. This approach bypasses the codes of the genre, notably through staging and the selection of natural settings.
A winner of the 2024 CNAP award for contemporary documentary photography and the Grande Commande 2022 from the Ministry of Culture, Scarlett Coten has also received prestigious honors such as the Leica Oskar Barnack Prize in 2016, the Critical Mass TOP 50 in 2018 and Photography Now 21 (Center for Photography at Woodstock).
Her debut monograph, Still Alive, was published by Actes Sud in 2009, and her contributions to numerous anthologies and exhibition catalogues have solidified her enduring influence on the photographic landscape.
The M series, as well as her latest project, UN-WANTED, will be released in 2026 by Fall Line Press (ATL).