Everyone knows that old circus act where someone packs as many clowns as possible into a tiny car and then has them spill out. Three French artists have reinterpreted that act all over Los Angeles, stuffing a dozen people or more into cars and photographing the ensuing chaos.

Cars and Bodies was created by Romain Dussaulx, a film director and videographer, Yann Rabanier, a photographer, and Thomas Cestia, an architect who studies transportation. You’d think there has to be some kind of Photoshop trickery going on, but it happened just as you see it and was shot on an old Shen Hao 4x5 camera.

Around 120 friends and acquaintances participated in this silliness, enduring the summer heat of LA to cram into cars like bagettes in a bag. It sometimes took several hours to get everyone arranged properly, Dussaulx and the others bending and contorting the many arms and legs into the perfect claustrophobic mashup. People had to get cozy.

“Most of the people in the cars didn’t know each other when we started but they definitely felt close after the shoot,” says Dussaulx. “I’m pretty sure that a lot of those people are now friends.”

The photos were taken in different parts of Los Angeles and give a nod to local peculiarities. In Beverly Hills, a red Honda is stuffed with private security guards, a common job in that neighborhood. In Venice Beach, a tiny old-school Fiat 500 is brimming with the legs of basketball players (some pro, some amateur) because of the famous basketball court nearby (remember White Men Can’t Jump?). The Volvo wagon on Zuma beach in Malibu is stuffed with people you might find exercising there. “Overall, the photos work as a kind of a sociological study of different parts of the city,” Dussaulx says.

Cars and Bodies comments on a culture in which nearly everyone drives, usually alone. The trio would like to continue the project in another megacity. They’re thinking Hong Kong, Dubai or somewhere in Mexico. Instead of cars, they'd like to do something with public transportation or bikes. They’d also like to exhibit Cars and Bodies in Los Angeles and are looking for the right gallery.

“This is sort of our message to Agelinos, so we want to bring it back,” Dussaulx says.