Le Chant du Styrène is the perfect example of how to turn a commissioned industrial film into a lyrical, satirical film masterpiece. When the young Alain Resnais was asked by the Péchiney plastics giant to make a short documentary on polystyrene, “that noble, entirely man-made matter,” Resnais sensed a rapport between Alexandrine verse and CinemaScope. With text by Raymond Queneau and music by Pierre Barbaud, Le Chant du Styrène is a beautiful, surrealist film. By far not the only industry film directed by someone who later became a celebrated film artist – think of Bernardo Bertolucci's 3 part TV documentary La via del petrolio (1967) – Resnais' Chant du Styrène can be considered a prime example of the not yet fully recognized subgenre of classical modern film directors' early films commissioned by oil.

Alain Resnais (1922-2014, France) stood as a globally renowned cinematic visionary. His film Hiroshima Mon Amour established him as one of the leading directors of the New Wave movement, particularly for his combination of traditional forms with radical content, highlighting sensitive topics, such as the atom bomb and war.