Gilles Lellouche arrived at the Cannes press conference for his Competition title Beating Hearts (L’amour Ouf) on Friday with one of the biggest cast delegations of the festival as its 77th edition entered its final strait.
As well as being joined on the stage by co-stars François Civil and Adèle Exarchopoulos and newcomers Mallory Wanecque and Malik Frikah, actors Jean-Pascal Zadi, Elodie Bouchez, Raphaël Quenard, Vincent Lacoste, Alain Chabat, Karim Leklou and Antony Bajon took up the front row of the press room.
They arrived on the wave of an enthusiastic response from the audience at Thursday night’s world premiere in the Grand Théâtre Lumière, which gave it a 15-minute standing ovation.
The modern Romeo and Juliet tale, which took Lellouche 17 years to bring to the big screen, is the actor and director’s third feature after hit comedy Sink or Swim.
“I take great, great pleasure from directing.
As well as being joined on the stage by co-stars François Civil and Adèle Exarchopoulos and newcomers Mallory Wanecque and Malik Frikah, actors Jean-Pascal Zadi, Elodie Bouchez, Raphaël Quenard, Vincent Lacoste, Alain Chabat, Karim Leklou and Antony Bajon took up the front row of the press room.
They arrived on the wave of an enthusiastic response from the audience at Thursday night’s world premiere in the Grand Théâtre Lumière, which gave it a 15-minute standing ovation.
The modern Romeo and Juliet tale, which took Lellouche 17 years to bring to the big screen, is the actor and director’s third feature after hit comedy Sink or Swim.
“I take great, great pleasure from directing.
- 5/24/2024
- by Melanie Goodfellow
- Deadline Film + TV
This year’s Cannes Film Festival should prove particularly festive for Mediawan Pictures managing director Elisabeth d’Arvieu. With five in-house productions premiering in the official selection and another in Critics’ Week, the exec and her team will hit the Croisette with cause for celebration.
As an ardent cinephile, she bolstered an extracurricular passion for movies while getting an Mba from Baruch College in New York. She still takes in a film a day.
The Cannes celebration promises to start early for Mediawan, kicking off with Quentin Dupieux’s festival opener “The Second Act,” then Palme d’Or contending Hearts” from Gilles Lellouche and Kirill Serebrennikov’s “Limonov: The Ballad of Eddie,” the epic “The Count of Monte-Cristo” screening out of competition and Un Certain Regard player “Le Royaume” from
emerging talent Julien Colonna.
When taken as a whole, the strong showing nicely reflects the group’s wider ambitions, from...
As an ardent cinephile, she bolstered an extracurricular passion for movies while getting an Mba from Baruch College in New York. She still takes in a film a day.
The Cannes celebration promises to start early for Mediawan, kicking off with Quentin Dupieux’s festival opener “The Second Act,” then Palme d’Or contending Hearts” from Gilles Lellouche and Kirill Serebrennikov’s “Limonov: The Ballad of Eddie,” the epic “The Count of Monte-Cristo” screening out of competition and Un Certain Regard player “Le Royaume” from
emerging talent Julien Colonna.
When taken as a whole, the strong showing nicely reflects the group’s wider ambitions, from...
- 5/16/2024
- by Elsa Keslassy and Ben Croll
- Variety Film + TV
Ajay Devgn’s Shaitaan & Laapataa Ladies Still(Photo Credit –Facebook)
On May 4, Ajay Devgn, R Madhavan, and Jyothika’s Shaitaan movie was released on Netflix. The movie was released in theatres on March 8 and received mixed reviews. However, the audience enjoyed the psychological horror thriller, and it became the first big hit of 2024. When it was released on the streaming platform, the response was equally impressive. Hence, Ajay’s film is in the second spot on Netflix’s Global Top 10 Films (Non-English) list.
Shaitaan is a remake of the Gujarati movie Vash. From May 6 to May 12, the Ajay Devgn-starrer received 6.6 million views. The movie that’s on the number one spot is The Courier. It’s a Spanish film that stars Aron Piper, Maria Pedraza, and Luis Tosar.
Watch the Shaitaan Trailer Below –
Just like Ajay Devgn’s Shaitaan, Kiran Rao’s Laapataa Ladies is also winning hearts. We already...
On May 4, Ajay Devgn, R Madhavan, and Jyothika’s Shaitaan movie was released on Netflix. The movie was released in theatres on March 8 and received mixed reviews. However, the audience enjoyed the psychological horror thriller, and it became the first big hit of 2024. When it was released on the streaming platform, the response was equally impressive. Hence, Ajay’s film is in the second spot on Netflix’s Global Top 10 Films (Non-English) list.
Shaitaan is a remake of the Gujarati movie Vash. From May 6 to May 12, the Ajay Devgn-starrer received 6.6 million views. The movie that’s on the number one spot is The Courier. It’s a Spanish film that stars Aron Piper, Maria Pedraza, and Luis Tosar.
Watch the Shaitaan Trailer Below –
Just like Ajay Devgn’s Shaitaan, Kiran Rao’s Laapataa Ladies is also winning hearts. We already...
- 5/16/2024
- by Pooja Darade
- KoiMoi
Already one of France’s most beloved and bankable actors (“The Stronghold”), Gilles Lellouche is about to graduate as a big-shot filmmaker five years after delivering his sophomore outing, “Sink or Swim,” a B.O. hit which lured more than four million moviegoers (over $35 million) in theaters.
His next movie, “Beating Hearts” (“L’amour Ouf”), budgeted in the €30 million range, is epic in many ways. And not just because of its breadth and running time exceeding three hours. A crime romance loosely based on Neville Thompson’s 1997 novel “Jackie Loves Johnser Ok,” the movie is an emotional rollercoaster spanning over 15 years in the lives of star-crossed lovers. It took Lellouche over a decade to write (alongside Audrey Diwan and Ahmed Hamidi) and four months to shoot with a cast mixing rising and famous actors, a pulsating soundtrack of cult 1980s and 1990s songs, topnotch key crew and dream-like musical interludes created by (La) Horde.
His next movie, “Beating Hearts” (“L’amour Ouf”), budgeted in the €30 million range, is epic in many ways. And not just because of its breadth and running time exceeding three hours. A crime romance loosely based on Neville Thompson’s 1997 novel “Jackie Loves Johnser Ok,” the movie is an emotional rollercoaster spanning over 15 years in the lives of star-crossed lovers. It took Lellouche over a decade to write (alongside Audrey Diwan and Ahmed Hamidi) and four months to shoot with a cast mixing rising and famous actors, a pulsating soundtrack of cult 1980s and 1990s songs, topnotch key crew and dream-like musical interludes created by (La) Horde.
- 1/20/2024
- by Elsa Keslassy
- Variety Film + TV
A new restoration of the 1959 horror film on Blu-ray and DVD, and making its UK digital debut, Horrors Of The Black Museum, starring Michael Gough and directed by Arthur Crabtree (Fiend Without a Face), marked the first film in the “Sadian Trilogy”, followed by the Hammer favourite Circus of Horrors and Michael Powell’s infamous Peeping Tom – introducing cinema audiences to a more shocking and salacious brand of onscreen horror.
A series of grisly, macabre murders sweep London and leave Scotland Yard completely baffled. Bancroft, an evil crime journalist, is hypnotising his assistant to commit murders using items curated in his own personal “Black Museum” – inspired by the infamous real-life collection of weapons and torture instruments used by criminals. Using these murders to fuel his own crime stories, Bancroft delights in the Yard’s embarrassment.
Experience fear beyond belief in this gruesome British horror treat that features a splendid lead...
A series of grisly, macabre murders sweep London and leave Scotland Yard completely baffled. Bancroft, an evil crime journalist, is hypnotising his assistant to commit murders using items curated in his own personal “Black Museum” – inspired by the infamous real-life collection of weapons and torture instruments used by criminals. Using these murders to fuel his own crime stories, Bancroft delights in the Yard’s embarrassment.
Experience fear beyond belief in this gruesome British horror treat that features a splendid lead...
- 1/8/2024
- by Peter 'Witchfinder' Hopkins
- Horror Asylum
A new restoration of the 1954 British black-and-white science fiction film Devil Girl From Mars, directed by David MacDonald and starring Patricia Laffan, Hugh McDermott, Hazel Court, Peter Reynolds and Adrienne Corri.
One winter evening in a lonely Scottish inn, guests become prisoners when Nyah, a pitiless Martian with a robot minion, lands on earth and traps them within an invisible wall. With Martian males extinct after a battle of the sexes, Nyah aims to capture breeding stock on Earth. As escape attempts falter, the helpless humans must decide which one of them will die to save the others and possibly the world!
A famously economical film, Devil Girl From Mars was filmed over three weeks with no retakes in order to use up pre-booked studio time when another project finished ahead of schedule.
With a cast including the magnificent Patricia Laffan (Quo Vadis) as Nyah, and genre favourites Adrienne Corri...
One winter evening in a lonely Scottish inn, guests become prisoners when Nyah, a pitiless Martian with a robot minion, lands on earth and traps them within an invisible wall. With Martian males extinct after a battle of the sexes, Nyah aims to capture breeding stock on Earth. As escape attempts falter, the helpless humans must decide which one of them will die to save the others and possibly the world!
A famously economical film, Devil Girl From Mars was filmed over three weeks with no retakes in order to use up pre-booked studio time when another project finished ahead of schedule.
With a cast including the magnificent Patricia Laffan (Quo Vadis) as Nyah, and genre favourites Adrienne Corri...
- 1/4/2024
- by Peter 'Witchfinder' Hopkins
- Horror Asylum
Studiocanal has boarded “A Prophet,” a new television adaptation of Jacques Audiard’s acclaimed 2009 film. The eight-episode limited series started filming on July 3, with “Django” director Enrico Maria Artale and a diverse new cast led by Mamadou Sidibé.
The French-language series brings back the award-winning team behind the original film, including creators and writers Abdel Raouf Dafri and Nicolas Peufaillit (“The Returned”), as well as producer Marco Cherqui (“Savages”), in agreement with “A Prophet” producers Why Not Productions and Page 114.
The show, which is filming in Marseille and Puglia, Italy, is produced by Cherqui and Sebastien Janin, former Apple exec and co-founder of Media Musketeers, and co-produced by Ugc, Orange Studio, Entourage Series and Savon Noir, with the participation of Ocs. The key crew includes “Gomorra” cinematographer Ferran Paredes Rubio. Veteran Italian producer Fabio Conversi (“Youth”) is exec producing the series.
The original movie won the grand jury prize at the Cannes Film Festival,...
The French-language series brings back the award-winning team behind the original film, including creators and writers Abdel Raouf Dafri and Nicolas Peufaillit (“The Returned”), as well as producer Marco Cherqui (“Savages”), in agreement with “A Prophet” producers Why Not Productions and Page 114.
The show, which is filming in Marseille and Puglia, Italy, is produced by Cherqui and Sebastien Janin, former Apple exec and co-founder of Media Musketeers, and co-produced by Ugc, Orange Studio, Entourage Series and Savon Noir, with the participation of Ocs. The key crew includes “Gomorra” cinematographer Ferran Paredes Rubio. Veteran Italian producer Fabio Conversi (“Youth”) is exec producing the series.
The original movie won the grand jury prize at the Cannes Film Festival,...
- 7/10/2023
- by Elsa Keslassy
- Variety Film + TV
Exclusive: Paris-based Goodfellas has unveiled a raft of deals on French genre title Vincent Must Die by Stéphan Castang following its buzzy world premiere in Cannes Critics’ Week in May.
In Europe, it has sold to Benelux (O’Brother), Switzerland and Germany (Ascot Elite), Spain (La Aventura), Greece (Cinobo), Italy (I Wonder), Portugal (Alambique), Scandinavia (Njuta), Bulgaria (Beta Film), Yugoslavia (McF), Hungary (Ads), Romania (Independenta), Poland (Moonshot Company) and Cis (Russian Report).
Outside of Europe, it has been acquired for Turkey (Bir Film), Japan (Pflug), South Korea (Contents Panda) and Taiwan (Av Jet).
As previously announced, a buyers consortium consisting of Flawless, XYZ Films and Tea Shop Productions acquired all English-speaking territories during Cannes, including the North America, the UK and Australian and New Zealand.
The thriller stars Karim Leklou, best known internationally for his role Netflix hit The Stronghold, as a graphic designer who starts coming under attack from...
In Europe, it has sold to Benelux (O’Brother), Switzerland and Germany (Ascot Elite), Spain (La Aventura), Greece (Cinobo), Italy (I Wonder), Portugal (Alambique), Scandinavia (Njuta), Bulgaria (Beta Film), Yugoslavia (McF), Hungary (Ads), Romania (Independenta), Poland (Moonshot Company) and Cis (Russian Report).
Outside of Europe, it has been acquired for Turkey (Bir Film), Japan (Pflug), South Korea (Contents Panda) and Taiwan (Av Jet).
As previously announced, a buyers consortium consisting of Flawless, XYZ Films and Tea Shop Productions acquired all English-speaking territories during Cannes, including the North America, the UK and Australian and New Zealand.
The thriller stars Karim Leklou, best known internationally for his role Netflix hit The Stronghold, as a graphic designer who starts coming under attack from...
- 6/22/2023
- by Melanie Goodfellow
- Deadline Film + TV
France’s culture minister Rima Abdul-Malak gave her first interview with the international press at the Cannes Film Festival where she unveiled a plan to invest €350 million ($378 million) in the film and TV industry. Abdul-Malak also addressed some hot topics that are currently being debated within the industry, such as the windowing rules for streamers, the protests over the pension reform, the rise of the far right and criticism of France’s #MeToo movement.
The government-investment initiative, called the Grande Fabrique de l’Image, is meant to bolster France’s position as a leader in film, TV and video games production, studio facilities, post-production, as well as film and TV training. The funding will go to 68 projects that were selected from 175 applicants by two committees, one of which is headed by filmmaker Cedric Jimenez. Among the selected projects are 11 studio facilities, 12 animation studios, six video games studios, five visual effects and post production houses,...
The government-investment initiative, called the Grande Fabrique de l’Image, is meant to bolster France’s position as a leader in film, TV and video games production, studio facilities, post-production, as well as film and TV training. The funding will go to 68 projects that were selected from 175 applicants by two committees, one of which is headed by filmmaker Cedric Jimenez. Among the selected projects are 11 studio facilities, 12 animation studios, six video games studios, five visual effects and post production houses,...
- 5/20/2023
- by Elsa Keslassy
- Variety Film + TV
Orange Studio is launching several French projects at the Cannes Film Market, including Simon Bouisson’s “Drone,” a thriller produced by Haut et Court (“The Night of the 12th”), and “Miss Violet,” a period drama directed by Eric Besnard (“Delicious”) and starring Alexandra Lamy (“Rolling to You”).
Bouisson, who is directing “Drone,” previously penned and directed the short-format series “Stalk” which was hit on France Televisions’ youth-centered service and has been optioned for a remake in the U.S. The thriller stars Marion Barbeau, the dancer-turned-actor who broke through in Cedric Klapisch’s “Rise,” as well as Eugénie Derouand (“Paris Police”), Cédric Kahn (“November”) and Stefan Crepon (“Peter Von Kant”)
“Drone” follows Emilie who has freshly arrived in Paris to study architecture. At night, to make ends meet, she works as a cam-girl, something which she keeps to herself. One evening, a mysterious drone appears at her apartment window. From then on,...
Bouisson, who is directing “Drone,” previously penned and directed the short-format series “Stalk” which was hit on France Televisions’ youth-centered service and has been optioned for a remake in the U.S. The thriller stars Marion Barbeau, the dancer-turned-actor who broke through in Cedric Klapisch’s “Rise,” as well as Eugénie Derouand (“Paris Police”), Cédric Kahn (“November”) and Stefan Crepon (“Peter Von Kant”)
“Drone” follows Emilie who has freshly arrived in Paris to study architecture. At night, to make ends meet, she works as a cam-girl, something which she keeps to herself. One evening, a mysterious drone appears at her apartment window. From then on,...
- 5/12/2023
- by Elsa Keslassy
- Variety Film + TV
After the launch of its first original content in 2022, Disney+ France is expanding, revealing a slate of new productions Wednesday at the Series Mania festival in Lille.
The announcement was made by Pauline Dauvin, Disney’s VP Programming, Original Productions and Acquisitions.
The projects include a mix of film and TV productions. The first is a new original series titled Les enfants sont roism (The Children Are Kings), adapted from Delphine Le Vigan’s novel of the same name. The series is currently in pre-production and is expected to shoot later this year.
Two original French films are also set to debut on the streamer this year. The first, Une Zone à Défendre, is billed as a “moving and intense melodrama” and stars Lyna Khoudri (The French Dispatch) and François Civil (The Stronghold). The pic is currently scheduled for a summer release. The second feature is Antigang: La Relève, an action film starring Alban Lenoir,...
The announcement was made by Pauline Dauvin, Disney’s VP Programming, Original Productions and Acquisitions.
The projects include a mix of film and TV productions. The first is a new original series titled Les enfants sont roism (The Children Are Kings), adapted from Delphine Le Vigan’s novel of the same name. The series is currently in pre-production and is expected to shoot later this year.
Two original French films are also set to debut on the streamer this year. The first, Une Zone à Défendre, is billed as a “moving and intense melodrama” and stars Lyna Khoudri (The French Dispatch) and François Civil (The Stronghold). The pic is currently scheduled for a summer release. The second feature is Antigang: La Relève, an action film starring Alban Lenoir,...
- 3/22/2023
- by Zac Ntim
- Deadline Film + TV
Carole Scotta and Barbara Letellier, the French producers of Dominik Moll’s thriller “The Night of the 12th,” won the Toscan du Plantier Award at a Paris ceremony hosted by the Cesar Academie.
The pair, who produced the movie at Haut et Court (“The Class”), were voted on by 1,641 people, including artists and crew members who were previously nominated at the Cesar Awards, along with the governing body members of the Cesar Academie.
On stage with Letellier, Scotta praised Moll’s vision for the “The Night of the 12th” and said the film was “driven by the power of the collective effort. “That’s what we see with this group of cops working tirelessly to solve a case,” she continued.
“The Night of the 12th” is vying for 10 Cesar awards. The brooding topical procedural, which also opened as part of Cannes’ Premiere section, stars Bastien Bouillon and Bouli Lanners as...
The pair, who produced the movie at Haut et Court (“The Class”), were voted on by 1,641 people, including artists and crew members who were previously nominated at the Cesar Awards, along with the governing body members of the Cesar Academie.
On stage with Letellier, Scotta praised Moll’s vision for the “The Night of the 12th” and said the film was “driven by the power of the collective effort. “That’s what we see with this group of cops working tirelessly to solve a case,” she continued.
“The Night of the 12th” is vying for 10 Cesar awards. The brooding topical procedural, which also opened as part of Cannes’ Premiere section, stars Bastien Bouillon and Bouli Lanners as...
- 2/14/2023
- by Elsa Keslassy
- Variety Film + TV
Paris-based sales company beefs up slate ahead of Berlinale market.
Paris-based sales company Pyramide International has boarded Anna Novion’s Le Théorème de Marguerite and Marie Garel-Weiss’s Sur La Branche and will kick off pre-sales for the French dramas at the upcoming EFM.
Novion’s Le Théorème de Marguerite stars Ella Rumpf as the titular character, a brilliant mathematics student at France’s top university the Ecole Normale Supérieure. On the day of her thesis presentation, a mistake shakes up all the certainty in her planned-out life and she decides to quit everything and start afresh.
Rumpf notably starred...
Paris-based sales company Pyramide International has boarded Anna Novion’s Le Théorème de Marguerite and Marie Garel-Weiss’s Sur La Branche and will kick off pre-sales for the French dramas at the upcoming EFM.
Novion’s Le Théorème de Marguerite stars Ella Rumpf as the titular character, a brilliant mathematics student at France’s top university the Ecole Normale Supérieure. On the day of her thesis presentation, a mistake shakes up all the certainty in her planned-out life and she decides to quit everything and start afresh.
Rumpf notably starred...
- 2/13/2023
- by Rebecca Leffler
- ScreenDaily
French actor and director Guillaume Canet has revealed he is feeling the pressure ahead of the release next week of his ambitious 70M production Asterix & Obelix: The Middle Kingdom.
Canet directs and stars in the film as iconic plucky Gaul Asterix in an all-star ensemble cast also featuring Gilles Lellouche as Obelix, Vincent Cassel as Julius Caesar, Marion Cotillard as Cleopatra and Swedish soccer star Zlatan Ibrahimović as Caesar’s bodyguard Antivirus.
The production is Canet’s eighth feature after 2006 breakout Tell No One, 2010 hit Little White Lies, Brooklyn-set, English-language debut Blood Ties and the smaller more personal pandemic-shot film Lui.
Long-time collaborator Alain Attal at Trésor Films produces with Pathé and Yohan Baiada at Les Enfants Terribles.
Pathé will launch Asterix & Obelix: The Middle Kingdom on 1,200 screens on February 1. Local media is hailing the release as the biggest film event of early 2023.
Canet has said he...
Canet directs and stars in the film as iconic plucky Gaul Asterix in an all-star ensemble cast also featuring Gilles Lellouche as Obelix, Vincent Cassel as Julius Caesar, Marion Cotillard as Cleopatra and Swedish soccer star Zlatan Ibrahimović as Caesar’s bodyguard Antivirus.
The production is Canet’s eighth feature after 2006 breakout Tell No One, 2010 hit Little White Lies, Brooklyn-set, English-language debut Blood Ties and the smaller more personal pandemic-shot film Lui.
Long-time collaborator Alain Attal at Trésor Films produces with Pathé and Yohan Baiada at Les Enfants Terribles.
Pathé will launch Asterix & Obelix: The Middle Kingdom on 1,200 screens on February 1. Local media is hailing the release as the biggest film event of early 2023.
Canet has said he...
- 1/27/2023
- by Melanie Goodfellow
- Deadline Film + TV
Magnolia Pictures has acquired U.S. rights to “Kompromat,” an action thriller film directed by Jerome Salle (“The Largo Winch” ), starring Gilles Lellouche (“The Stronghold”) and Joanna Kulig (“Cold War”). Snd, the commercial arm of M6, is representing the film in international markets.
Loosely based on a true story, “Kompromat” stars Lellouche as a French diplomat working in Siberia who is arrested overnight by the Russian authorities. Accused of sexually abusing his own daughter and imprisoned, he realizes he is a victim of a Kompromat. Someone is working with the Fsb (Federal Security Service) to frame him. His only way out is to escape.
“’Kompromat’ is an incredibly tense espionage thriller,” said Magnolia president Eamonn Bowles. “Jerome Salle and the stellar cast have delivered an exceptional movie.”
Salle, who wrote the script with Caryl Ferre, a well known French crime novelist, said “the story of ‘Kompromat’ is really pertinent to...
Loosely based on a true story, “Kompromat” stars Lellouche as a French diplomat working in Siberia who is arrested overnight by the Russian authorities. Accused of sexually abusing his own daughter and imprisoned, he realizes he is a victim of a Kompromat. Someone is working with the Fsb (Federal Security Service) to frame him. His only way out is to escape.
“’Kompromat’ is an incredibly tense espionage thriller,” said Magnolia president Eamonn Bowles. “Jerome Salle and the stellar cast have delivered an exceptional movie.”
Salle, who wrote the script with Caryl Ferre, a well known French crime novelist, said “the story of ‘Kompromat’ is really pertinent to...
- 9/30/2022
- by Elsa Keslassy
- Variety Film + TV
A trio of French films, the melodrama “A Family for 1640 Days,” political thriller “Goliath” and comedy “Adieu Paris,” are set to be released in the U.S. by the New York-based company Distrib Films.
Both Fabien Gorgeart’s “A Family for 1640 Days” (“Une vraie famille”) and Edouard Baer’s “Adieu Paris” are represented in international markets by Le Pacte.
“A Family for 1640 Days,” winner of the top prize at last year’s American French Film Festival, revolves around Simon, a six-year old adopted boy who is about to reunite with his biological father. The movie stars Melanie Thierry (“En therapie”) and Lyes Salem. Distrib Films is planning to release the film in early 2023 and have it play at festivals.
A love letter to the French capital, “Adieu Paris” marks the fourth directorial outing of actor-turned-helmer Baer, who last directed “Ouvert la nuit” in which he starred opposite Audrey Tautou and Sabrina Ouazani.
Both Fabien Gorgeart’s “A Family for 1640 Days” (“Une vraie famille”) and Edouard Baer’s “Adieu Paris” are represented in international markets by Le Pacte.
“A Family for 1640 Days,” winner of the top prize at last year’s American French Film Festival, revolves around Simon, a six-year old adopted boy who is about to reunite with his biological father. The movie stars Melanie Thierry (“En therapie”) and Lyes Salem. Distrib Films is planning to release the film in early 2023 and have it play at festivals.
A love letter to the French capital, “Adieu Paris” marks the fourth directorial outing of actor-turned-helmer Baer, who last directed “Ouvert la nuit” in which he starred opposite Audrey Tautou and Sabrina Ouazani.
- 9/26/2022
- by Elsa Keslassy
- Variety Film + TV
Canal+, France’s leading pay TV group, has signed distribution deals with Universal and Sony to ramp up its programming of U.S. movies.
Under the pact, Canal+ now has access to the studios’ new films six months after their releases, a spokesperson told Variety. Sony’s “Spiderman : No Way Home” is currently being broadcast on Canal+’s linear pay TV channels, along with its transactional VOD platform, My Canal.
The news was teased by Maxime Saada, Canal+ Group’s chair and CEO, during the company’s upbeat press conference on Sept. 14, which was held at their posh headquarters in Paris. Saada, who recently joined the management board of Vivendi, Canal Plus Group’s parent company, said the outfit already boasts partnerships with Fox, Disney and Warner, as well as Paramount.
Canal+ also has a six-month window on French movies. The company previously had to wait 9 months after the...
Under the pact, Canal+ now has access to the studios’ new films six months after their releases, a spokesperson told Variety. Sony’s “Spiderman : No Way Home” is currently being broadcast on Canal+’s linear pay TV channels, along with its transactional VOD platform, My Canal.
The news was teased by Maxime Saada, Canal+ Group’s chair and CEO, during the company’s upbeat press conference on Sept. 14, which was held at their posh headquarters in Paris. Saada, who recently joined the management board of Vivendi, Canal Plus Group’s parent company, said the outfit already boasts partnerships with Fox, Disney and Warner, as well as Paramount.
Canal+ also has a six-month window on French movies. The company previously had to wait 9 months after the...
- 9/15/2022
- by Elsa Keslassy
- Variety Film + TV
MK2 Films has unveiled a clip of Rachid Hami’s “For My Country,” a politically minded family drama which will world premiere at the Venice Film Festival in the Horizons section.
A personal movie, “For My Country” is based on the life of Hami, whose brother tragically died in a French military school during a hazing rite.
Produced by Mizar Films, the searing drama tells the story of Aissa, a brilliant young officer of Algerian origin who dies during a fresher initiation ritual at the prestigious French military academy of Saint-Cyr. Refusing to take responsibility for his death, the French army insists to have Aissa buried in the Muslim plot of a suburban cemetery instead of the military one. Appalled by the obvious discrimination, Aissa’s older brother, Ismael, brings the family together to reclaim justice for Aissa.
Hami wrote in his director’s statement that he grew up feeling...
A personal movie, “For My Country” is based on the life of Hami, whose brother tragically died in a French military school during a hazing rite.
Produced by Mizar Films, the searing drama tells the story of Aissa, a brilliant young officer of Algerian origin who dies during a fresher initiation ritual at the prestigious French military academy of Saint-Cyr. Refusing to take responsibility for his death, the French army insists to have Aissa buried in the Muslim plot of a suburban cemetery instead of the military one. Appalled by the obvious discrimination, Aissa’s older brother, Ismael, brings the family together to reclaim justice for Aissa.
Hami wrote in his director’s statement that he grew up feeling...
- 8/30/2022
- by Elsa Keslassy
- Variety Film + TV
Jean Dujardin, best known for his roles in light-hearted films such as the Oscar-winning “The Artist,” plays the fierce boss of a highly-secretive police brigade that tracked down the assailants of the 2015 Paris attacks in Cedric Jimenez’s “November.”
Written by Olivier Demangel (“Atlantics”), the fast-paced and tense thriller world premiered at the Cannes Film Festival and is being represented in international markets by Studiocanal. Jimenez, who was at Cannes last year with another action-packed police thriller, “The Stronghold,” sat alongside Dujardin with Variety during the festival to discuss the genesis of “November,” how the ensemble cast — including Dujardin, Sandrine Kiberlain, Anais Demoustier and a flurry of fresh faces — worked together, and what it meant for them to tackle this recent tragedy.
“November” is one of the few recent movies alluding to, or set against the backdrop of the Paris terror attacks of 2015, for instance Alice Winocour’s “Paris Memories...
Written by Olivier Demangel (“Atlantics”), the fast-paced and tense thriller world premiered at the Cannes Film Festival and is being represented in international markets by Studiocanal. Jimenez, who was at Cannes last year with another action-packed police thriller, “The Stronghold,” sat alongside Dujardin with Variety during the festival to discuss the genesis of “November,” how the ensemble cast — including Dujardin, Sandrine Kiberlain, Anais Demoustier and a flurry of fresh faces — worked together, and what it meant for them to tackle this recent tragedy.
“November” is one of the few recent movies alluding to, or set against the backdrop of the Paris terror attacks of 2015, for instance Alice Winocour’s “Paris Memories...
- 5/27/2022
- by Elsa Keslassy
- Variety Film + TV
Deadline’s annual group of Ones to Watch in Cannes is made up of actors and filmmakers who are all bringing something fresh to the festival. The distinction isn’t always reserved for brand new faces; rather, we’ve selected people who are branching out, or who find themselves in waters where they are liable to make waves. Cannes can be a place of reinvention, after all.
French director, writer and producer Cédric Jimenez is known for his gritty crime thrillers inspired by real-life stories involving specific police departments. They include 2014 Toronto Film Festival debut The Connection (La French) about magistrate Pierre Michel, who waged an obsessive six-year battle to bring down Marseille’s infamous ‘French Connection’ drug ring; and last year’s box office hit The Stronghold (Bac nord), based on a 2012 police corruption case, also in Marseille.
The latter was acquired by Netflix outside France where it was the No.
French director, writer and producer Cédric Jimenez is known for his gritty crime thrillers inspired by real-life stories involving specific police departments. They include 2014 Toronto Film Festival debut The Connection (La French) about magistrate Pierre Michel, who waged an obsessive six-year battle to bring down Marseille’s infamous ‘French Connection’ drug ring; and last year’s box office hit The Stronghold (Bac nord), based on a 2012 police corruption case, also in Marseille.
The latter was acquired by Netflix outside France where it was the No.
- 5/21/2022
- by Nancy Tartaglione
- Deadline Film + TV
Alain Attal, the French producer behind the upcoming 73 million movie “Asterix and Obelix: The Middle Kingdom,” is teaming with Studiocanal on Thomas Bidegain’s survival drama “Suddenly,” which will star Gilles Lellouche (“The Stronghold”) and Melanie Thierry (“En Therapie”).
Currently in pre-production, “Suddenly” will mark the sophomore directing outing of Bidegain, whose co-screenwriting credits include “Stillwater,” “The Sisters Brothers” and “A Prophet.”
The project was previously set up as an English-language project with Jake Gyllenhaal and Vanessa Kirby set to star. Gyllenhaal’s Nine Stories was also a co-producer on the project and is no longer attached.
Attal told Variety that Bidegain re-worked the script with Valentine Monteil to make the €14 million (14.7 million) film with a French cast and produce it entirely out of France with Attal’s Tresor Films and Studiocanal, which is financing, handling international sales and French distribution rights. Icelandic banner True North Prods. is an executive co-producer on the movie.
Currently in pre-production, “Suddenly” will mark the sophomore directing outing of Bidegain, whose co-screenwriting credits include “Stillwater,” “The Sisters Brothers” and “A Prophet.”
The project was previously set up as an English-language project with Jake Gyllenhaal and Vanessa Kirby set to star. Gyllenhaal’s Nine Stories was also a co-producer on the project and is no longer attached.
Attal told Variety that Bidegain re-worked the script with Valentine Monteil to make the €14 million (14.7 million) film with a French cast and produce it entirely out of France with Attal’s Tresor Films and Studiocanal, which is financing, handling international sales and French distribution rights. Icelandic banner True North Prods. is an executive co-producer on the movie.
- 5/20/2022
- by Elsa Keslassy
- Variety Film + TV
What a long, strange trip it’s been. While no one will say the global film industry has returned to “normal,” this week’s Cannes Film Festival will quite look similar to pre-pandemic days when it kicks off Tuesday. After a drastically pared-down version in 2020 and a 2021 edition that saw business activity overwhelmingly skew virtual, sales agents, financiers, filmmakers, and producers are set to descend on the Croisette in full, in-person force with a sense of excitement and eagerness for the possibilities.
It’s not that last year’s edition was a bust — the virtual market launched sales for projects from Alexander Payne, Todd Solondz, Todd Haynes, and Zoë Kravitz — but even the most optimistic of players can’t help but wonder if sales out of Sundance, Cannes, and other festivals might have been even bigger had the gatherings been in person.
“The last few festivals and markets have been...
It’s not that last year’s edition was a bust — the virtual market launched sales for projects from Alexander Payne, Todd Solondz, Todd Haynes, and Zoë Kravitz — but even the most optimistic of players can’t help but wonder if sales out of Sundance, Cannes, and other festivals might have been even bigger had the gatherings been in person.
“The last few festivals and markets have been...
- 5/16/2022
- by Chris Lindahl and Anne Thompson
- Indiewire
Studiocanal will launch rights sales at Cannes on “Kangaroo,” the first Australia-New Zealand production from the local arm of the French film and TV group Canal Plus. The film is inspired by the real-life story of The Kangaroo Sanctuary founder Chris ‘Brolga’ Barns, who has been saving and raising baby kangaroos in Central Australia since 2005.
The narrative is shaped as a heart-warming family comedy about a down-on-his-luck pro surfer who becomes stranded in an Outback town after a car accident. There, he teams up with 11-year-old Indigenous girl. The pair form an unlikely friendship working together to rescue and rehabilitate orphaned baby kangaroos (joeys). The endeavor proves to be life-changing for both.
Kate Woods is attached to direct from a script by Harry Cripps (“The Dry,” “Penguin Bloom,” “Back to the Outback”).
The film is being produced by Marian Macgowan (“The Great,” “Two Hands”) and Louise Smith (“Dance Academy,” “The...
The narrative is shaped as a heart-warming family comedy about a down-on-his-luck pro surfer who becomes stranded in an Outback town after a car accident. There, he teams up with 11-year-old Indigenous girl. The pair form an unlikely friendship working together to rescue and rehabilitate orphaned baby kangaroos (joeys). The endeavor proves to be life-changing for both.
Kate Woods is attached to direct from a script by Harry Cripps (“The Dry,” “Penguin Bloom,” “Back to the Outback”).
The film is being produced by Marian Macgowan (“The Great,” “Two Hands”) and Louise Smith (“Dance Academy,” “The...
- 5/12/2022
- by Patrick Frater
- Variety Film + TV
The long-hoped for sprint back to cinemas as the world began to emerge from the Covid-19 pandemic in 2021 failed to materialise.
Cinema attendance in the EU and the UK increased by 31.5 from 299 million in 2020 to 394 million in 2021. But 2021’s level accounts for only 40 of the average pre-pandemic admission level registered between 2017 and 2019, according to provisional figures taken from the 2022 edition of Focus – World Film Market Trends.
The report, prepped each year for Cannes’ Marché du Film attendees and published by the Council of Europe’s European Audiovisual Observatory, notes cinema attendance in 2021 rose slowly amid another difficult year for cinema going in Europe.
Cinema attendance in the EU and the UK increased by 31.5 from 299 million in 2020 to 394 million in 2021. But 2021’s level accounts for only 40 of the average pre-pandemic admission level registered between 2017 and 2019, according to provisional figures taken from the 2022 edition of Focus – World Film Market Trends.
The report, prepped each year for Cannes’ Marché du Film attendees and published by the Council of Europe’s European Audiovisual Observatory, notes cinema attendance in 2021 rose slowly amid another difficult year for cinema going in Europe.
- 5/12/2022
- by Stuart Kemp
- ScreenDaily
Europe’s movie production levels bounced back to pre-pandemic levels in 2021. The continent’s box office, however, lagged way behind, gross revenues coming in at less than half those before Covid-19, according to the 2022 edition of Focus – World Film Market Trends.
A reference for much of the film industry in Europe, the annual report is prepared for Cannes Marché du Film by the European Audiovisual Observatory. The full report will be made available on May 17 at the beginning of this year’s Cannes Festival.
First details released from the report focus on a disconnect whose repercussions will play over Europe this year. Europe’s production halt in March 2020 was dramatic, but “comparatively brief,” the Focus report argues. Measuring productions in terms of films starting principal photography, receiving public funding or being certified, 2021 production activity often exceeded its pre-pandemic levels, the report announces.
One question is whether such levels will prove...
A reference for much of the film industry in Europe, the annual report is prepared for Cannes Marché du Film by the European Audiovisual Observatory. The full report will be made available on May 17 at the beginning of this year’s Cannes Festival.
First details released from the report focus on a disconnect whose repercussions will play over Europe this year. Europe’s production halt in March 2020 was dramatic, but “comparatively brief,” the Focus report argues. Measuring productions in terms of films starting principal photography, receiving public funding or being certified, 2021 production activity often exceeded its pre-pandemic levels, the report announces.
One question is whether such levels will prove...
- 5/12/2022
- by John Hopewell
- Variety Film + TV
Pathé and Dimitri Rassam’s Chapter 2, a Mediawan Company, have unveiled the first stills of their sprawling 75 million two-part European film based on Alexandre Dumas’s masterpiece “The Three Musketeers” – D’Artagnan” and “The Three Musketeers – Milady.”
The companies will present a 15-minute promo reel at Cannes. Directed by Martin Bourboulon (“Eiffel”), the two ‘Musketeers’ films are currently completing principal photography after more than 140 days of shooting at prestigious French landmarks, including the Louvre Palace, the Hôtel des Invalides, the Castles of Fontainebleau and Saint-Germain-en-Laye, Fort la Latte and Chantilly, as well as the citadel of Saint-Malo and the historic city center of Troyes.
Penned by Alexandre de la Patellière and Matthieu Delaporte (“What’s in a Name?”), the films are headlined by a galaxy of stars who have an international profile, including François Civil (“The Stronghold”), Vincent Cassel (“Black Swan”), Eva Green (“Casino Royal”), Romain Duris (“Eiffel”), Vicky Krieps (“Phantom Thread...
The companies will present a 15-minute promo reel at Cannes. Directed by Martin Bourboulon (“Eiffel”), the two ‘Musketeers’ films are currently completing principal photography after more than 140 days of shooting at prestigious French landmarks, including the Louvre Palace, the Hôtel des Invalides, the Castles of Fontainebleau and Saint-Germain-en-Laye, Fort la Latte and Chantilly, as well as the citadel of Saint-Malo and the historic city center of Troyes.
Penned by Alexandre de la Patellière and Matthieu Delaporte (“What’s in a Name?”), the films are headlined by a galaxy of stars who have an international profile, including François Civil (“The Stronghold”), Vincent Cassel (“Black Swan”), Eva Green (“Casino Royal”), Romain Duris (“Eiffel”), Vicky Krieps (“Phantom Thread...
- 5/4/2022
- by Elsa Keslassy
- Variety Film + TV
Cedric Jimenez’s action thriller “The Stronghold” won the Cesar Award which was voted on by nearly 2,000 students from French high schools in France, the U.K., Mayotte and Japan.
The Studiocanal film, which was produced by Hugo Sélignac at Chi-Fou-Mi Productions, a Mediawan company, was nominated for seven Cesar Awards, including best film and two actor nods. Both Jimenez and Selignac were honored at the ceremony which was attended by the Education Minister Jean-Michel Blanquer and Veronique Cayla, the president of the Cesar Academy.
Headlined by a French cast comprising Gilles Lellouche, Francois Civil, Karim Leklou, Adele Exarchopoulos (“Blue Is the Warmest Color”) and Kenza Fortas, “The Stronghold” is inspired by a true story and follows a police brigade in a crime-ridden neighborhood of Marseille.
After world premiering at the Cannes Film Festival, the film was released in French theaters by Studiocanal and became one of 2021’s rare local box office hits,...
The Studiocanal film, which was produced by Hugo Sélignac at Chi-Fou-Mi Productions, a Mediawan company, was nominated for seven Cesar Awards, including best film and two actor nods. Both Jimenez and Selignac were honored at the ceremony which was attended by the Education Minister Jean-Michel Blanquer and Veronique Cayla, the president of the Cesar Academy.
Headlined by a French cast comprising Gilles Lellouche, Francois Civil, Karim Leklou, Adele Exarchopoulos (“Blue Is the Warmest Color”) and Kenza Fortas, “The Stronghold” is inspired by a true story and follows a police brigade in a crime-ridden neighborhood of Marseille.
After world premiering at the Cannes Film Festival, the film was released in French theaters by Studiocanal and became one of 2021’s rare local box office hits,...
- 3/10/2022
- by Elsa Keslassy
- Variety Film + TV
The cast of Happening, from left, Louise Orry-Diquero, Anamaria Vartolomei and Luàna Bajrami. Audrey Diwan: 'My desire to make the film came out of the shock of learning about the reality, the truth of what Annie Ernaux had gone through' Photo: UniFrance She may not exactly be a new kid on the block. In fact, Audrey Diwan, whose latest film plays at Glasgow Film Festival this week, admits she has been around the block a few times in her chosen crafts as a novelist and scriptwriter frequently working with her ex-partner Cédric Jimenez on such cutting-edge thrillers as Bac Nord and previously La French.
Audrey Diwan: 'Cinema is about freedom' Photo: UniFrance Her trajectory may be about to change after her second solo feature Happening won the Golden Lion (or should that be Lioness?) at the Venice Film Festival last year in the wake of another femme victory by...
Audrey Diwan: 'Cinema is about freedom' Photo: UniFrance Her trajectory may be about to change after her second solo feature Happening won the Golden Lion (or should that be Lioness?) at the Venice Film Festival last year in the wake of another femme victory by...
- 3/8/2022
- by Richard Mowe
- eyeforfilm.co.uk
This year’s ceremony was uncharacteristically devoid of controversy after politically-charged editions in 2020 and 2021.
Xavier Giannoli’s costume drama Lost Illusions was the big winner at the 47th Cesar awards of France’s Academy of Cinema and Arts and Sciences on Friday evening (25), winning best film, adapted screenplay, costume and supporting actor among others.
The adaptation of Honoré de Balzac’s19th-century novel premiered in competition at Venice last year. It was the frontrunner at the nomination stage, making it into 15 of the 24 César categories.
The other big winner of the evening was Leos Carax’s English-language musical Annette. Carax won best director,...
Xavier Giannoli’s costume drama Lost Illusions was the big winner at the 47th Cesar awards of France’s Academy of Cinema and Arts and Sciences on Friday evening (25), winning best film, adapted screenplay, costume and supporting actor among others.
The adaptation of Honoré de Balzac’s19th-century novel premiered in competition at Venice last year. It was the frontrunner at the nomination stage, making it into 15 of the 24 César categories.
The other big winner of the evening was Leos Carax’s English-language musical Annette. Carax won best director,...
- 2/25/2022
- by Melanie Goodfellow
- ScreenDaily
Update, writethru: Xavier Giannoli’s Lost Illusions (Illusions Perdues) scooped the Best Film prize at France’s César Awards this evening in Paris. Along with the top honor, the period drama adapted from the Honoré de Balzac classic took a further six statues and was the overall biggest laureate of the evening. (Scroll down for the full list of winners.)
An absent Leos Carax was named Best Director for Annette, his musical starring Adam Driver and Marion Cotillard that opened the Cannes Film Festival last year — where Carax was also named Best Director — and which took a total five Césars tonight.
Lost Illusions and Annette led nominations coming into the evening, followed by Valérie Lemercier’s Céline Dion-inspired Aline which converted in the Best Actress category for Lemercier’s titular portrayal.
Cédric Jiminez’s Bac Nord (The Stronghold) was shut out across its seven nominations. A box office success at home,...
An absent Leos Carax was named Best Director for Annette, his musical starring Adam Driver and Marion Cotillard that opened the Cannes Film Festival last year — where Carax was also named Best Director — and which took a total five Césars tonight.
Lost Illusions and Annette led nominations coming into the evening, followed by Valérie Lemercier’s Céline Dion-inspired Aline which converted in the Best Actress category for Lemercier’s titular portrayal.
Cédric Jiminez’s Bac Nord (The Stronghold) was shut out across its seven nominations. A box office success at home,...
- 2/25/2022
- by Nancy Tartaglione
- Deadline Film + TV
Rolling off an unpredictable and crowded race, Xavier Giannoli’s period piece “Lost Illusions” and Leos Carax’s musical romance “Annette” scooped the top prizes at the 47th Cesar Awards, France’s equivalent to the Oscars, on Friday evening. “Lost Illusions,” which led the nominations, won seven awards, including best film and best male newcomer. “Annette,” which world premiered on opening night at the Cannes Film Festival, won five awards, including best director and original score for Ron Mael and Russell Mael from the rock band Sparks, who performed live during the Cesar ceremony.
The glitzy in-person event took place at the Olympia theater in Paris with prestigious guests including Adam Driver, who was nominated for his performance in “Annette,” and Cate Blanchett, who received the honorary Cesar Award from the hands of Isabelle Huppert. Celebrated by a long and rowdy standing ovation, Blanchett got up on stage and gave a long hug to Huppert.
The glitzy in-person event took place at the Olympia theater in Paris with prestigious guests including Adam Driver, who was nominated for his performance in “Annette,” and Cate Blanchett, who received the honorary Cesar Award from the hands of Isabelle Huppert. Celebrated by a long and rowdy standing ovation, Blanchett got up on stage and gave a long hug to Huppert.
- 2/25/2022
- by Elsa Keslassy
- Variety Film + TV
Edouard Weil and Alice Girard, the producers of Audrey Diwan’s Venice Golden Lion-winning “Happening” and Valerie Lemercier’s Celine Dion movie “Aline,” won the Toscan du Plantier Award at a fancy Paris ceremony hosted by the Cesar Academie.
Weil and Girard, who run the Paris-based production banner Rectangle Productions, were selected by 1,557 voters, including all the artists and crew members who have been nominated at the Cesar Awards since 2008, as well as the 164 members of the Association for the Promotion of Cinema.
Besides “Happening” and “Aline,” Rectangle Productions delivered several other critically acclaimed films within the last year, including Jean-Christophe Meurisse’s “Bloody Oranges” and Gaspar Noé’s “Vortex” which played at Cannes.
Since being created by Weil in 2003, the company has also produced films by international auteurs, including Elia Suleiman. Girard, an industry veteran who previously held a senior executive position at French broadcasting group France Televisions, joined...
Weil and Girard, who run the Paris-based production banner Rectangle Productions, were selected by 1,557 voters, including all the artists and crew members who have been nominated at the Cesar Awards since 2008, as well as the 164 members of the Association for the Promotion of Cinema.
Besides “Happening” and “Aline,” Rectangle Productions delivered several other critically acclaimed films within the last year, including Jean-Christophe Meurisse’s “Bloody Oranges” and Gaspar Noé’s “Vortex” which played at Cannes.
Since being created by Weil in 2003, the company has also produced films by international auteurs, including Elia Suleiman. Girard, an industry veteran who previously held a senior executive position at French broadcasting group France Televisions, joined...
- 2/16/2022
- by Elsa Keslassy
- Variety Film + TV
Banijay has partnered with Alain Goldman, the French producer of “La Vie en rose” to produce premium scripted series and feature films through his two production entities, Pitchipoï Productions and Montmartre Films.
Goldman, whose production company was previously named Legende Films, will work alongside Banijay France.
The French producer had been working with nearly every French film studios, notably Gaumont, and has also been collaborating with streamers such as Netflix with “The Spy,” starring Sacha Baron Cohen, and Amazon Prime with Caroline Vigneaux’s “Flashback” and Mélanie Laurent’s “The Mad Women’s Ball.” Besides “La Vie en Rose,” which earned Marion Cotillard an Oscar, Goldman has also produced “An Officer and a Spy” (2019), “The Connection” (2014) and “The Crimson Rivers” (2000).
“Banijay shares our vision for the company going forward, and their immediate understanding and belief in our ethos makes them the perfect partner for our future,” said Goldman. “Joining a forward-thinking...
Goldman, whose production company was previously named Legende Films, will work alongside Banijay France.
The French producer had been working with nearly every French film studios, notably Gaumont, and has also been collaborating with streamers such as Netflix with “The Spy,” starring Sacha Baron Cohen, and Amazon Prime with Caroline Vigneaux’s “Flashback” and Mélanie Laurent’s “The Mad Women’s Ball.” Besides “La Vie en Rose,” which earned Marion Cotillard an Oscar, Goldman has also produced “An Officer and a Spy” (2019), “The Connection” (2014) and “The Crimson Rivers” (2000).
“Banijay shares our vision for the company going forward, and their immediate understanding and belief in our ethos makes them the perfect partner for our future,” said Goldman. “Joining a forward-thinking...
- 2/11/2022
- by Elsa Keslassy
- Variety Film + TV
“Kompromat,” an anticipated spy thriller directed by Jerome Salle with Gilles Lellouche (“The Stronghold”) and Joanna Kulig (“Cold War”), has been sold by Snd to distributors in key territories.
Inspired by a true story, “Kompromat” stars Lellouche as a French diplomat working in Siberia who discovers he is being framed by the Fbs and has to find his way out of the trap. On top of directing the film, Salle also produced it at Super 8.
Snd, which is co-producing the pic, has sold it to Germany, Austria and Italy (Koch Media), Spain (A Contracorriente), Switzerland (Pathé), Benelux (Athena), Australia and New Zealand (Palace), Poland (Monolith) and Ex Yugoslavia (Blitz).
Snd will host a virtual market premiere for “Kompromat” later this week, in the run up to the Berlin Film Festival.
“We’re really happy to finally be able to show this film to buyers who trusted us and to...
Inspired by a true story, “Kompromat” stars Lellouche as a French diplomat working in Siberia who discovers he is being framed by the Fbs and has to find his way out of the trap. On top of directing the film, Salle also produced it at Super 8.
Snd, which is co-producing the pic, has sold it to Germany, Austria and Italy (Koch Media), Spain (A Contracorriente), Switzerland (Pathé), Benelux (Athena), Australia and New Zealand (Palace), Poland (Monolith) and Ex Yugoslavia (Blitz).
Snd will host a virtual market premiere for “Kompromat” later this week, in the run up to the Berlin Film Festival.
“We’re really happy to finally be able to show this film to buyers who trusted us and to...
- 2/2/2022
- by Elsa Keslassy
- Variety Film + TV
Hot French helmer Cedric Jimenez, whose latest hit movie “The Stronghold” is nominated for seven Cesar awards, is developing “Verde,” an epic adventure drama revolving around the kidnapping of former Colombian presidential candidate Ingrid Betancourt and her campaign manager Clara Rojas, who were held captive in the jungle for seven years.
Inspired by a true story like all of Jimenez’s films, “Verde” opens in 2002, when Betancourt — a high-profile French-Colombian senator who was running for president and had vowed to end political corruption — was brutally kidnapped with her campaign manager, Rojas, by the Revolutionary Armed Forces of Colombia (Farc). The pair were held hostage by the rebel group in the hostile jungle for nearly a decade, along with many other victims of Colombia’s civil war.
Jimenez is writing the script for “Verde” with Olivier Demangel, the co-screenwriter of Mati Diop’s Cannes’ grand prize winner “Atlantics” and Jimenez’s upcoming movie “November,...
Inspired by a true story like all of Jimenez’s films, “Verde” opens in 2002, when Betancourt — a high-profile French-Colombian senator who was running for president and had vowed to end political corruption — was brutally kidnapped with her campaign manager, Rojas, by the Revolutionary Armed Forces of Colombia (Farc). The pair were held hostage by the rebel group in the hostile jungle for nearly a decade, along with many other victims of Colombia’s civil war.
Jimenez is writing the script for “Verde” with Olivier Demangel, the co-screenwriter of Mati Diop’s Cannes’ grand prize winner “Atlantics” and Jimenez’s upcoming movie “November,...
- 1/27/2022
- by Elsa Keslassy
- Variety Film + TV
Ceremony for awards voted on by 4,363 members of the César academy will take place on February 25.
Xavier Giannoli’s literary adaptation Lost Illusions is the frontrunner in the nomination stage of the 47th edition of France’s César awards, followed by Leos Carax’s Annette and Valérie Lemercier’s Aline.
France’s Academy of Cinema and Arts and Sciences unveiled the nomination list online on Wednesday morning (January 26), ahead of the ceremony scheduled to take place on February 25.
Giannoli’s adaptation of Honoré de Balzac’s eponymous 19th-century novel, which premiered in competition at Venice last year, was nominated in...
Xavier Giannoli’s literary adaptation Lost Illusions is the frontrunner in the nomination stage of the 47th edition of France’s César awards, followed by Leos Carax’s Annette and Valérie Lemercier’s Aline.
France’s Academy of Cinema and Arts and Sciences unveiled the nomination list online on Wednesday morning (January 26), ahead of the ceremony scheduled to take place on February 25.
Giannoli’s adaptation of Honoré de Balzac’s eponymous 19th-century novel, which premiered in competition at Venice last year, was nominated in...
- 1/26/2022
- by Melanie Goodfellow
- ScreenDaily
Update: Xavier Giannoli’s Illusions Perdues (Lost Illusions) leads nominations for the 2022 César Awards, France’s equivalent to the Oscar. The Venice premiere scored 15 mentions, followed by Leos Carax’s Annette, which opened the Cannes Film Festival last year and has 11 nominations. They are followed by Valérie Lemercier’s Aline, the musical dramedy inspired by the life of Céline Dion which also debuted in Cannes and has 10 nods. (Scroll down for the full list of nominations.)
Interestingly, the three films that France shortlisted for the International Feature Academy Award race came in on the lower end. Cédric Jiminez’s Bac Nord (The Stronghold) took seven nominations, while Audrey Diwan’s Venice Golden Lion winner Happening settles for four, tying Cannes Palme d’Or winner Titane.
The latter was France’s eventual entry to the Oscars, but did not make the shortlist. It was also shut out of the Best Film category at the Césars today.
Interestingly, the three films that France shortlisted for the International Feature Academy Award race came in on the lower end. Cédric Jiminez’s Bac Nord (The Stronghold) took seven nominations, while Audrey Diwan’s Venice Golden Lion winner Happening settles for four, tying Cannes Palme d’Or winner Titane.
The latter was France’s eventual entry to the Oscars, but did not make the shortlist. It was also shut out of the Best Film category at the Césars today.
- 1/26/2022
- by Nancy Tartaglione
- Deadline Film + TV
Xavier Giannoli’s sprawling period piece “Lost Illusions,” Valerie Lemercier’s Celine Dion biopic “Aline” and Leos Carax’s musical romance “Annette” with Marion Cotillard and Adam Driver are leading the race at France’s 47th Cesar Awards, France’s equivalent to the Oscars.
Other top Cesar contenders include Cedric Jimenez’s action-packed cop drama “Bac Nord,” Catherine Corsini’s social drama “La fracture,” Yann Gozlan’s thriller Boite noire,” Jacques Audiard’s contemporary love drama “Paris, 13th District” and Arthur Harari’s WW2-set “Onoda: 10,000 Nights in the Jungle.”
Audrey Diwan’s Venice Golden Lion-winning “Happening” and Julia Ducournau’s Cannes’ Palme d’Or-winning “Titane” earned four nods each.
Vying for 15 Cesar Awards, “Lost Illusions” is a big-budget adaptation of Honoré de Balzac’s masterpiece starring Benjamin Voisin (“Summer of 85”), Cecile de France (“The Young Pope”), Vincent Lacoste (“Victoria”), Xavier Dolan and Jeanne Balibar (“Les Miserables”) all of whom earned nominations.
Other top Cesar contenders include Cedric Jimenez’s action-packed cop drama “Bac Nord,” Catherine Corsini’s social drama “La fracture,” Yann Gozlan’s thriller Boite noire,” Jacques Audiard’s contemporary love drama “Paris, 13th District” and Arthur Harari’s WW2-set “Onoda: 10,000 Nights in the Jungle.”
Audrey Diwan’s Venice Golden Lion-winning “Happening” and Julia Ducournau’s Cannes’ Palme d’Or-winning “Titane” earned four nods each.
Vying for 15 Cesar Awards, “Lost Illusions” is a big-budget adaptation of Honoré de Balzac’s masterpiece starring Benjamin Voisin (“Summer of 85”), Cecile de France (“The Young Pope”), Vincent Lacoste (“Victoria”), Xavier Dolan and Jeanne Balibar (“Les Miserables”) all of whom earned nominations.
- 1/26/2022
- by Elsa Keslassy
- Variety Film + TV
After a chaotic year marked by a five-month shutdown and Covid-related restrictions, the French box office bounced back during the last quarter of 2021, bolstered by “Spider-Man: No Way Home” and a flurry of big-budgeted U.S. and French releases.
After reopening on May 18, French theaters pulled 96 million admissions — not a bad result considering that it’s just 23.2% drop from 2019, when France’s box office broke a 50-year record. Compared with 2020, when cinemas were closed for several months, tickets were up by 47.2%, according to Comscore France. Based on an estimated average of €6.75 per ticket, the French B.O. reached €648 million ($731 million).
Hollywood tentpoles dominated the top 10 highest-grossing films of 2021, starting with Sony’s “Spider-Man: No Way Home,” which sold over 5 million tickets. Universal’s “No Time to Die” and Warner Bros.’s “Dune” followed. The other U.S. titles in the top 10 are Disney’s “Encanto,” Universal’s “F9,” Warner Bros.
After reopening on May 18, French theaters pulled 96 million admissions — not a bad result considering that it’s just 23.2% drop from 2019, when France’s box office broke a 50-year record. Compared with 2020, when cinemas were closed for several months, tickets were up by 47.2%, according to Comscore France. Based on an estimated average of €6.75 per ticket, the French B.O. reached €648 million ($731 million).
Hollywood tentpoles dominated the top 10 highest-grossing films of 2021, starting with Sony’s “Spider-Man: No Way Home,” which sold over 5 million tickets. Universal’s “No Time to Die” and Warner Bros.’s “Dune” followed. The other U.S. titles in the top 10 are Disney’s “Encanto,” Universal’s “F9,” Warner Bros.
- 1/3/2022
- by Elsa Keslassy
- Variety Film + TV
Julia Ducournau’s “Titane,” the “Raw” filmmaker’s bold and violent Palme d’Or winner, has been selected to represent France on the ballot for the 2022 Oscars Best International Feature category.
We are very proud that Titane, an exceptionally particular film, will fly the colors of France in the competition for the International Feature Oscar,” said Dominique Boutonnat, President of France’s National Cinema Center, in a statement to Deadline.
“Titane” is one of 2021’s biggest surprises — and not just because its lead character has sex with a car. The film exploded out of the Cannes Film Festival earlier this year, winning the Palme d’Or — an outcome that allowed Ducournau to join Jane Campion as the only two female filmmakers ever awarded Cannes’ highest honor. Since its release in the United States in early October, “Titane” has grossed more than $1 million at the box office, a boon for distributor Neon.
We are very proud that Titane, an exceptionally particular film, will fly the colors of France in the competition for the International Feature Oscar,” said Dominique Boutonnat, President of France’s National Cinema Center, in a statement to Deadline.
“Titane” is one of 2021’s biggest surprises — and not just because its lead character has sex with a car. The film exploded out of the Cannes Film Festival earlier this year, winning the Palme d’Or — an outcome that allowed Ducournau to join Jane Campion as the only two female filmmakers ever awarded Cannes’ highest honor. Since its release in the United States in early October, “Titane” has grossed more than $1 million at the box office, a boon for distributor Neon.
- 10/13/2021
- by Christopher Rosen
- Gold Derby
France has selected Julia Ducournau’s Cannes Palme d’Or winner Titane to represent the country for the 2022 Oscars in the best international feature category.
Ducournau’s revenge drama beat out the other two titles on France’s shortlist: Audrey Diwan’s Venice Golden Lion winner Happening, a period abortion drama, and Cédric Jiminez’s The Stronghold, a crime thriller set in the streets of Marseille.
Titane is by far the most radical of the three. The feature, Ducournau’s follow-up to her well-received cannibal-coming-of-age story Raw, mixes extreme body horror and elements of female revenge films with macho muscle-car-obsessed movies. (A key plot point involves the lead character, played by newcomer Agathe ...
Ducournau’s revenge drama beat out the other two titles on France’s shortlist: Audrey Diwan’s Venice Golden Lion winner Happening, a period abortion drama, and Cédric Jiminez’s The Stronghold, a crime thriller set in the streets of Marseille.
Titane is by far the most radical of the three. The feature, Ducournau’s follow-up to her well-received cannibal-coming-of-age story Raw, mixes extreme body horror and elements of female revenge films with macho muscle-car-obsessed movies. (A key plot point involves the lead character, played by newcomer Agathe ...
- 10/12/2021
- The Hollywood Reporter - Movie News
France has selected Julia Ducournau’s Cannes Palme d’Or winner Titane to represent the country for the 2022 Oscars in the best international feature category.
Ducournau’s revenge drama beat out the other two titles on France’s shortlist: Audrey Diwan’s Venice Golden Lion winner Happening, a period abortion drama, and Cédric Jiminez’s The Stronghold, a crime thriller set in the streets of Marseille.
Titane is by far the most radical of the three. The feature, Ducournau’s follow-up to her well-received cannibal-coming-of-age story Raw, mixes extreme body horror and elements of female revenge films with macho muscle-car-obsessed movies. (A key plot point involves the lead character, played by newcomer Agathe ...
Ducournau’s revenge drama beat out the other two titles on France’s shortlist: Audrey Diwan’s Venice Golden Lion winner Happening, a period abortion drama, and Cédric Jiminez’s The Stronghold, a crime thriller set in the streets of Marseille.
Titane is by far the most radical of the three. The feature, Ducournau’s follow-up to her well-received cannibal-coming-of-age story Raw, mixes extreme body horror and elements of female revenge films with macho muscle-car-obsessed movies. (A key plot point involves the lead character, played by newcomer Agathe ...
- 10/12/2021
- The Hollywood Reporter - Film + TV
Film festival prize-winners with strong North American distribution often have an advantage in the Oscar race for Best International Feature Film (see our 2022 predictions here). In the heated battle over the final selection from France’s Centre national du cinéma et de l’image animée, which announced their submission on October 12, Julia Ducournau’s taboo-busting Palme d’Or and TIFF Midnight Madness winner “Titane” emerged as the final pick.
The film beat out rookie Audrey Diwan’s Venice Golden Lion winner, the ’60s drama “Happening” (IFC Films), an immersive look at a high-school achiever’s harrowing experience trying to get an abortion, as well as surprise finalist “Bac Nord,” a slum policier directed by Cédric Jimenez, a French box-office smash with a low profile stateside — which was co-written by rising star Diwan.
The French selection committee included one-year members — auteurs Florian Zeller and Julie Delpy, ex-WarnerMedia senior executive Iris Knobloch,...
The film beat out rookie Audrey Diwan’s Venice Golden Lion winner, the ’60s drama “Happening” (IFC Films), an immersive look at a high-school achiever’s harrowing experience trying to get an abortion, as well as surprise finalist “Bac Nord,” a slum policier directed by Cédric Jimenez, a French box-office smash with a low profile stateside — which was co-written by rising star Diwan.
The French selection committee included one-year members — auteurs Florian Zeller and Julie Delpy, ex-WarnerMedia senior executive Iris Knobloch,...
- 10/12/2021
- by Anne Thompson
- Thompson on Hollywood
Film festival prize-winners with strong North American distribution often have an advantage in the Oscar race for Best International Feature Film (see our 2022 predictions here). In the heated battle over the final selection from France’s Centre national du cinéma et de l’image animée, which announced their submission on October 12, Julia Ducournau’s taboo-busting Palme d’Or and TIFF Midnight Madness winner “Titane” emerged as the final pick.
The film beat out rookie Audrey Diwan’s Venice Golden Lion winner, the ’60s drama “Happening” (IFC Films), an immersive look at a high-school achiever’s harrowing experience trying to get an abortion, as well as surprise finalist “Bac Nord,” a slum policier directed by Cédric Jimenez, a French box-office smash with a low profile stateside — which was co-written by rising star Diwan.
The French selection committee included one-year members — auteurs Florian Zeller and Julie Delpy, ex-WarnerMedia senior executive Iris Knobloch,...
The film beat out rookie Audrey Diwan’s Venice Golden Lion winner, the ’60s drama “Happening” (IFC Films), an immersive look at a high-school achiever’s harrowing experience trying to get an abortion, as well as surprise finalist “Bac Nord,” a slum policier directed by Cédric Jimenez, a French box-office smash with a low profile stateside — which was co-written by rising star Diwan.
The French selection committee included one-year members — auteurs Florian Zeller and Julie Delpy, ex-WarnerMedia senior executive Iris Knobloch,...
- 10/12/2021
- by Anne Thompson
- Indiewire
Julia Ducournau’s Cannes Film Festival Palme d’Or winner Titane has been selected to represent France in the Best International Feature Film Oscar race. The country’s selection committee had shortlisted three titles as the potential submission, including Audrey Diwan’s Venice Golden Lion winner L’Evénement (Happening) and Cédric Jiminez’s Bac Nord (The Stronghold).
Titane is a bold choice for France, which often tends toward the more traditional in submitting films to the Academy Awards. The audacious film was released locally by Diaphana Distribution in July after making history as only the second film directed by a woman to win the top Cannes honor. It has sold over 300K tickets in its home country.
See the updated list of entries for the 2022 International Feature Oscar below.
‘Titane’s Julia Ducournau Recalls “Shock” Of Finding Out She Won Cannes Palme D’Or (Twice) – Contenders London
The story follows a woman (Agathe Rouselle) who,...
Titane is a bold choice for France, which often tends toward the more traditional in submitting films to the Academy Awards. The audacious film was released locally by Diaphana Distribution in July after making history as only the second film directed by a woman to win the top Cannes honor. It has sold over 300K tickets in its home country.
See the updated list of entries for the 2022 International Feature Oscar below.
‘Titane’s Julia Ducournau Recalls “Shock” Of Finding Out She Won Cannes Palme D’Or (Twice) – Contenders London
The story follows a woman (Agathe Rouselle) who,...
- 10/12/2021
- by Nancy Tartaglione
- Deadline Film + TV
Film was among three films shortlisted to be the French submission alongside Happening and Bac Nord.
Julia Ducournau’s Cannes Palme d’Or winner Titane will be France’s submission to the best international film category for the 2022 Oscars.
It was among three films shortlisted in the country’s two-part selection process alongside Audrey Diwan’s Venice Golden Lion winner Happening and Cédric Jimenez’s box office hit Bac Nord (aka The Stronghold).
The genre-bending thriller is lead produced by Jean-Christophe Reymond at Kazak Productions in co-production with Belgium’s Frakas Productions, Arte Cinema France and Belgian pay-tv companies Voo and BeTV.
Julia Ducournau’s Cannes Palme d’Or winner Titane will be France’s submission to the best international film category for the 2022 Oscars.
It was among three films shortlisted in the country’s two-part selection process alongside Audrey Diwan’s Venice Golden Lion winner Happening and Cédric Jimenez’s box office hit Bac Nord (aka The Stronghold).
The genre-bending thriller is lead produced by Jean-Christophe Reymond at Kazak Productions in co-production with Belgium’s Frakas Productions, Arte Cinema France and Belgian pay-tv companies Voo and BeTV.
- 10/12/2021
- by Melanie Goodfellow
- ScreenDaily
Since winning the prestigious Golden Lion at the Venice Film Festival just over a month ago, French-Lebanese filmmaker Audrey Diwan has emerged as one of the most exciting and relevant new voices of contemporary world cinema with her sophomore outing, “Happening.”
Working with a tight budget, a fairly unknown lead actress (Anamaria Vartolomei) and a polarizing topic, Diwan was able to deliver a nuanced and relatable portrayal of Anne, a bright young female student determined to rise above her social upbringing who faces an unwanted pregnancy in 1960’s France — at a time when abortion was considered a crime.
“Happening,” based on Annie Emaux’s semi-autobiographical novel, is now one of the three movies pre-selected by France’s Oscar committee to vie for an international feature film nomination, along with Julia Ducournau’s Cannes’ Palme d’Or winning “Titane” and Cedric Jimenez’s “Bac Nord” (co-written by Diwan). In any other year,...
Working with a tight budget, a fairly unknown lead actress (Anamaria Vartolomei) and a polarizing topic, Diwan was able to deliver a nuanced and relatable portrayal of Anne, a bright young female student determined to rise above her social upbringing who faces an unwanted pregnancy in 1960’s France — at a time when abortion was considered a crime.
“Happening,” based on Annie Emaux’s semi-autobiographical novel, is now one of the three movies pre-selected by France’s Oscar committee to vie for an international feature film nomination, along with Julia Ducournau’s Cannes’ Palme d’Or winning “Titane” and Cedric Jimenez’s “Bac Nord” (co-written by Diwan). In any other year,...
- 10/10/2021
- by Elsa Keslassy and Clayton Davis
- Variety Film + TV
Audrey Diwan’s “Happening,” one of the three shortlisted films to represent France for the upcoming 94th Academy Awards, will make its North American premiere at the Chicago Film Festival as part of the Global Currants and Women in Cinema program on Saturday, Oct. 17.
“Happening” (L’événement) had its world premiere at the 78th Venice Film Festival, winning the Golden Lion, making Diwan one of only five women who have ever won since 1949.
Just acquired by IFC Films and Film Nation, the film is an adaptation of Annie Ernaux’s eponymous novel that looks back on her experience with abortion when it was still illegal in France in the 1960s. “Diwan’s ‘Happening’ is a timely exploration of the choices women have to make and is a powerful appeal for personal freedoms,” said Chicago International Film Festival Artistic Director Mimi Plauché.
“Audrey Diwan’s quietly devastating sophomore feature is the latest...
“Happening” (L’événement) had its world premiere at the 78th Venice Film Festival, winning the Golden Lion, making Diwan one of only five women who have ever won since 1949.
Just acquired by IFC Films and Film Nation, the film is an adaptation of Annie Ernaux’s eponymous novel that looks back on her experience with abortion when it was still illegal in France in the 1960s. “Diwan’s ‘Happening’ is a timely exploration of the choices women have to make and is a powerful appeal for personal freedoms,” said Chicago International Film Festival Artistic Director Mimi Plauché.
“Audrey Diwan’s quietly devastating sophomore feature is the latest...
- 10/9/2021
- by Clayton Davis
- Variety Film + TV
France’s Oscar selection committee has shortlisted three titles as the country’s potential submission for the International Feature Oscar race. They include Audrey Diwan’s Venice Golden Lion winner L’Evénement (Happening), Julia Ducournau’s Cannes Palme d’Or laureate Titane and Cédric Jiminez’s Bac Nord (The Stronghold) which ran out of competition on the Riviera in July.
The two major prizewinners, Happening and Titane, were expected to figure among the group which will now be whittled down with the official entry announced on October 12.
Titane was released locally by Diaphana Distribution in July after making history as only the second film directed by a woman to win the top Cannes honor. Neon has domestic. The story follows a series of unexplained crimes; a father is reunited with the son who has been missing for 10 years. In its logline, it is also billed as “Titane : A metal...
The two major prizewinners, Happening and Titane, were expected to figure among the group which will now be whittled down with the official entry announced on October 12.
Titane was released locally by Diaphana Distribution in July after making history as only the second film directed by a woman to win the top Cannes honor. Neon has domestic. The story follows a series of unexplained crimes; a father is reunited with the son who has been missing for 10 years. In its logline, it is also billed as “Titane : A metal...
- 10/7/2021
- by Nancy Tartaglione
- Deadline Film + TV
Audrey Diwan’s Venice winner and timely abortion drama “Happening,” Julia Ducournau’s Cannes Palme d’Or-winning horror film “Titane,” and Cedric Jimenez’s cop thriller “Bac Nord” have been shortlisted by France’s Oscar committee. The French Oscar candidate is expected to be selected next Tuesday.
It’s a milestone year for French cinema and female directors, who won the top prizes at the biggest international film festivals, Cannes and Venice. Some other big-name directors were rumored to be in the pipeline for consideration, notably Xavier Giannoli with “Lost Illusions,” Celine Sciamma with “Petite Maman” and Jacques Audiard with “Paris, 13th District.” It turns out, however, that neither of them entered the race, letting “Happening” and “Titane” take center stage.
“Bac Nord,” which is co-written by Diwan, was pushed by Netflix and the movie’s French co-producer/distributor StudioCanal. An unlikely candidate for the international feature film race, the star-studded thriller opened at Cannes,...
It’s a milestone year for French cinema and female directors, who won the top prizes at the biggest international film festivals, Cannes and Venice. Some other big-name directors were rumored to be in the pipeline for consideration, notably Xavier Giannoli with “Lost Illusions,” Celine Sciamma with “Petite Maman” and Jacques Audiard with “Paris, 13th District.” It turns out, however, that neither of them entered the race, letting “Happening” and “Titane” take center stage.
“Bac Nord,” which is co-written by Diwan, was pushed by Netflix and the movie’s French co-producer/distributor StudioCanal. An unlikely candidate for the international feature film race, the star-studded thriller opened at Cannes,...
- 10/7/2021
- by Elsa Keslassy
- Variety Film + TV
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