News

A group of more than 350 international actors, directors and producers have signed a letter published on the first day of Cannes condemning the killing of Fatma Hassona, the Palestinian photojournalist and protagonist of the festival-bound documentary “Put Your Soul on Your Hand and Walk,” in an Israeli airstrike.

The letter, signed by names such as Mark Ruffalo, Guy Pearce, Ralph Fiennes, Melissa Barrera, Yorgos Lanthimos, Javier Bardem, Hannah Einbinder, Pedro Almodóvar, David Cronenberg, Alfonso Cuarón, Mike Leigh, Alex Gibney, Viggo Mortensen, Cynthia Nixon, Tessa Ross and many more, also called out the Academy of Motion Pictures Arts and Sciences’ for its “lack of support” for “No Other Land” co-director Hamdan Ballal.

Just three weeks after winning the Oscar for the documentary, Ballal was assaulted by settlers and kidnapped by the Israeli army. After being criticized for its silence over the incident, AMPAS eventually publicly apologized. “We are ashamed of such passivity,...

After unveiling their feature film line-up on Monday, now the spotlight is on the shorts this morning. La Semaine de la Critique aka Critics’ Week have a set of ten competition films (those filmmakers can workshop their eventual feature in their Next Step Programme) and a trio of shorts by established filmmakers make up the Special Screening triple bill. Smoke Sauna Sisterhood‘s Anna Hints teamed with Tushar Prakash for “Sauna Day” which flips the focus on the gender and looks at Southern Estonian men. Feature filmmaker Lucie Borleteau arrives with the teen tale about wanting a first kiss in “1996 ou les Malheurs de Solveig.”…...

Running Jan. 19-Feb. 19, this year’s MyFrenchFilmFestival, an online showcase organized by France’s film-tv promotional body UniFrance, will mark its 14th edition with an accent on young talent, both in front of and behind the camera, and an emphasis on female empowerment.

With a mix of heritage docs like Agnès Varda’s “Jane B. for Agnès V.,” and a nine-film competition that spotlights auteurist animation like Alain Ughetto’s “No Dogs or Italians Allowed” alongside outré dramatic fare, the 11 features and 15 shorts that make up this year’s selection will be available on 80 partner platforms as well on MyFrenchFilmFestival.com, where all the shorts will be available to screen free of charge.

All films will be subtitled in 11 languages, including Arabic, English, Japanese, Korean, Mandarin, Portuguese, Spanish and Ukrainian, while the feature section will also be available for free in many Latin American, African and Middle Eastern territories.

“No...

While unveiling its slate of new French originals and acquisitions on Monday, Prime Video announced that it would skip a French theatrical release for “Challengers,” Luca Guadagnino’s anticipated tennis drama. The film, which stars Zendaya, Josh O’Connor and “West Side Story” star Mike Faist, will still be released in theaters in all other territories.

During a posh press event hosted at the Pavillon Royal on the outskirts of Paris, Brigitte Ricou-Bellan, Prime Video’s country managing director for France, said the strategic move by the Amazon streamer resulted from France’s notoriously strict windowing rules, which demands streamers to wait 15 to 17 months after a theatrical roll out before making a new film available on their services. The rule has led other studios to opt to skip French cinemas for new releases before, such as Disney’s decision to debut “Strange World” on streaming.

“We’re a strong partner for French cinema and well-established talent.

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...

Pyramide International has boarded “Last Summer,” an erotic thriller by daring French director Catherine Breillat, which is being produced by Sbs Productions, the leading French banner behind Paul Verhoeven’s Oscar nominated “Elle.”

“Last Summer” boasts a strong cast led by Léa Drucker (“Custody”), Olivier Rabourdin (“Benedetta”), Clotilde Courau (“In The Shadow of Women”) and newcomer Samuel Kircher.

The Paris-based company, whose sales team is headed by Agathe Mauruc, is teasing the project with a three-minute promo at the Unifrance Rendez-vous taking place in Paris this week.

Drucker stars as Anne, a brilliant lawyer who lives happily in Paris with her husband Pierre and their 6- and 8-year-old daughters. One day, Theo, 17, Pierre’s son from a previous marriage, moves in with them. Anne is unsettled by Theo’s presence and gradually engages in a passionate relationship with him, putting her career and family life in danger.

A master at...

US director will be in Cannes this year with Palme d’Or contender Showing Up.

US director Kelly Reichardt will be honoured with the Carrosse d’Or award of the French directors guild La Société des Réalisateurs (Srf) during the 54th edition of its Directors’ Fortnight Cannes parallel section, running May 18 to 27.

She will be presented with the prize at the opening ceremony of Directors’ Fortnight on May 18.

Reichardt will be in Cannes this year with ninth feature Showing Up, which world premieres in competition in Official Selection.

“From River Of Grass to First Cow, we have consistently admired the...

Cannes’ Directors Fortnight, the section running alongside the Cannes Film Festival, is set to change its leadership after the 2022 edition. It will be Paolo Moretti’s third and last edition as artistic director of the program.

The Srf (Société des réalisateurs de films) which is the governing body of Directors Fortnight, announced the news on Feb. 9 and said that more changes are being planned. “The administration board of the Srf wishes to rethink thoroughly Directors’ Fortnight, its name, its singularity, and its strategic and political role.”

Moretti joined Directors’ Fortnight in 2019 from the Roche-sur-Yon Festival, where he had been artistic director since 2014. His exit comes as a surprise and industry insiders said Moretti was hoping to stay for one more edition in 2023. Due to the pandemic, the 2020 edition had to be scrapped. In 2021, Directors’ Fortnight returned with a lineup which included Joanna Hogg’s “The Souvenir Part II,” Clio Barnard...

Parallel Cannes section will unveil full 2021 line-up on June 8.

Celebrated documentarian Frederick Wiseman will be feted with the Carrosse d’Or award of Cannes Directors’ Fortnight this year, French directors guild the Société des Réalisateurs (Srf) has announced.

The US, France-based filmmaker will receive the award on the opening night of the 53rd edition of the parallel section, running July 7 to 17.

The Srf, which oversees the section, praised Wiseman for his “astoundingly rich body of work” that had left an “indelible mark” on the history of cinema.

”Never has anyone laid such patient, humane, curious, understanding, empathetic and politically acute...

Normal 0 false false false En-us X-none X-none

Cinema Retro continues to shine the spotlight on independent films of merit. 

By Giacomo Selloni

Written by Lucie Borleteau, Clara Bourreau, and Mathilde Boisseleau

Directed by Lucie Borleteau

In French and English with English subtitles.

Alice Lesage is a woman with her life in flux. We first meet her, swimming nude, on a secluded, rocky beach watched by her lover and fiancé. She is approaching thirty and engaged to Felix Bjornsen, a Norwegian cartoonist. She seems happy and at ease. But Alice has a strange occupation for a woman. She is an engineer on a freighter charged with keeping the ship's engines healthy. She's a very good one. But she is a lovely young woman, the only woman on a new assignment on a ship that's new to her, the Fidelio. It may be the name of the ship but it may also be viewed as an omen,...

The 11th edition of the French festival will unspool 12 – 18 October, showcasing almost 65 feature films, with 35 of which set to enjoy their French premieres. Due to be opened and closed by two films awarded the Cannes Film Festival’s Official Selection label (The Origin of the World by Laurent Lafitte and French Tech by Bruno Podalydès), the 11th La Roche-sur-Yon International Film Festival will unfold between 12 – 18 October. Showcasing in the cinemas signed up to the Vendean event - whose artistic direction is now helmed by Charlotte Serrand – we find almost 65 feature films, 33 of which are scheduled to enjoy their French premieres and a further two are gearing up to be screened in world premieres. In terms of the international competition, the jury will have to choose between eight titles, including one world...

Frankly, the English-language title of Leïla Slimani's popular novel (original French title Chanson douce), which has been retained as the English-language title of Lucie Borleteau's filmed adaptation, did not fill me with anticipation. That is, until I watched the trailer. Director Borleteau (Fidelio : Alice' Journey) has fashioned a thriller that looks to be far more complex than a silly American -- like me -- might think. Also, it's apparently inspired by a true story (?!). Here's the official synopsis in full: "Myriam (Leïla Bekhti) and Paul (Antoine Reinartz), are your typical pair of bourgeois Parisian parents of two young children, toddler Adam, and 5-year-old Mila, who are taking up all of Myriam's time. When Myriam decides to go back to work despite her husband's...

[Read the whole post on screenanarchy.com...]...

Stéphane Batut, director of Burning Ghost (Vif-Argent) starring Thimotée Robart and Judith Chemla: “I saw a lot of films on TV very late in the evening, a lot of American films, John Ford, Vincente Minnelli.” Photo: Anne-Katrin Titze

On Tuesday afternoon, Film at Lincoln Center’s Florence Almozini made a surprise announcement that the Burning Ghost (Vif-Argent) director would be doing a brief Q&a following the Us première. This gave me the opportunity to comment to Stéphane Batut on the costumes designed by Dorothée Guiraud (Céline Sciamma’s Portrait Of A Lady On Fire; Lucie Borleteau’s Perfect Nanny; Mathieu Amalric’s The Blue Room) for his début feature.

Stéphane Batut on Juste’s (Thimotée Robart) costume anchoring the love scene: “I needed for the jacket to be particularly striking.”

Known as a much-in-demand casting director (Serge Bozon’s Mrs. Hyde; Mathieu Amalric’s Barbara; Claire Denis’ Let The Sunshine In...

Hirokazu Kore-eda’s The Truth (La Vérité) star Ethan Hawke: "If you guys could be with these remarkable women, as I was, Catherine Deneuve and Juliette Binoche. They think differently and they speak differently and approach our work differently.” Photo: Anne-Katrin Titze

On Wednesday, March 4, it was announced by UniFrance that the French delegation, including UniFrance President Serge Toubiana, Lucie Borleteau, Maïmouna Doucouré, Mehdi Idir, Claude Lelouch, Valérie Perrin, Chiara Mastroianni, Mounia Meddour, Nicolas Pariser, Bruno Dumont, Sarah Suco, Pascal Bonitzer, Cédric Klapisch, Alice Winocour, and Juliette Binoche would not be attending Rendez-Vous with French Cinema in New York. Who You Think I Am (Celle Que Vous Croyez) director Safy Nebbou and An Easy Girl (Une Fille Facile) director Rebecca Zlotowski are still scheduled to do a Q&a.

Juliette Binoche with sea turtle: “I can say that this film had been a dream. I had been nagging Kore-eda...

Rebecca Zlotowski’s An Easy Girl (Une Fille Facile) featuring Mina Farid, Zahia Dehar, Benoît Magimel, Nuno Lopes, Clotilde Courau and Lakdhar Dridi, is a Rendez-Vous with French Cinema highlight Photo: Anne-Katrin Titze

Rendez-Vous with French Cinema Early Bird highlights in the UniFrance and Film at Lincoln Center 25th edition include Nicolas Pariser’s Alice And The Mayor (Alice Et Le maire), starring Anaïs Demoustier and Fabrice Luchini with Antoine Reinartz and Nora Hamzawi; Alice Winocour’s Proxima with Eva Green, Zélie Boulant, Matt Dillon, Sandra Hüller, and Lars Eidinger, score by Ryuichi Sakamoto; Bruno Dumont's Joan Of Arc (Jeanne), his sequel to Jeannette: The Childhood Of Joan of Arc, starring Lise Leplat Prudhomme, and Rebecca Zlotowski’s An Easy Girl (Une Fille Facile).

Opening the festival is Hirokazu Kore-eda’s The Truth (La Vérité), starring Catherine Deneuve (also in Cédric Kahn’s Happy Birthday - Fête De Famille), Juliette.

Distrib Films has acquired U.S. rights to Lucie Borleteau’s “The Perfect Nanny” and Cédric Klapisch’s “Someone Somewhere,” both of which will screen at the Rendez-Vous with French Cinema in New York, a festival organised by the Film Society of the Lincoln Center and UniFrance.

A psychological thriller, “The Perfect Nanny” is adapted from Leila Slimani’s bestselling novel “Chanson Douce” which was awarded France’s highest literary prize, the Prix Goncourt, in 2016.

Represented in international markets by Studiocanal, “The Perfect Nanny” follows Myriam (Leïla Bekhti), a lawyer who decides to return to work after having children. She and her husband (Antoine Reinartz) think they’ve found the perfect nanny for their son and daughter. The film’s U.S. remake rights have been acquired by Legendary and Paul Downs Colaizzo is on board to adapt and direct the English-language adaptation. “The Perfect Nanny” was produced by Pascal Caucheteux...

Exclusive: UniFrance and Film at Lincoln Center have set the lineup for the 25th edition of Rendez-Vous with French Cinema (March 5–15), the annual New York mini-festival dedicated to French filmmaking. The event will open with Hirokazu Kore-eda’s drama The Truth, starring Juliette Binoche, Catherine Deneuve and Ethan Hawke.

For the first time, the festival is introducing an Audience Award. Additionally, the festival is expanding its industry-facing events with a day-long networking event to bring together French sales agents, French producers, and American industry on Friday, March 6.

Highlights of the 22-film lineup include Christophe Honoré’s On a Magical Night, for which Chiara Mastroianni won an award in Cannes’ Un Certain Regard section; Quentin Dupieux’s satire Deerskin, starring Oscar winner Jean Dujardin and Adèle Haenel; Bruno Dumont’s Joan of Arc, which received a Cannes Special Jury Mention; Mounia Meddour’s Papicha, the story of young women’s resistance...

Other new titles include ‘Seberg’ and ‘Uncut Gems’.

eOne’s 1917, directed by Sam Mendes, and Universal’s Seberg, starring Kristen Stewart, are among the new openers at the UK box office this weekend.

First World War thriller 1917 arrives on a wave of critical acclaim, which includes nine Bafta nominations and Golden Globe wins for best drama film and best director. It will be distributed in the UK by eOne in 686 cinemas.

Told in what appears to be one continuous shot, the film primarily centres on two young British soldiers on a mission to deliver a message deep in enemy territory.

A young couple make a terrible childcare choice in this strained, unsatisfying drama based on Leïla Slimani’s bestselling novel

If a young couple hire an apparently perfect nanny to look after their two young children, allowing them to return to the carefree world of socialising and professional fulfilment that they once enjoyed … well, in theory, that nanny could just turn out to be a thoroughly nice person. But in the movies she must gradually reveal herself to be a sinister weirdo. This strained and unsatisfying bad-nanny drama is from French film-maker Lucie Borleteau, who directed Fidelio: Alice’s Journey, a weird sex-aboard-a-container-ship drama

It is based on the Goncourt-winning bestseller from Leïla Slimani, in turn based on a real-life murder case. Myriam (Leïla Bekhti) and Paul (Antoine Reinartz) are a lawyer and record producer in Paris whose relationship is creaking under the strain of two young kids. So they...

British filmmaker Sarah Gavron, whose latest film, “Rocks,” competed at Toronto in the Platform section and won two awards at San Sebastien, will be honored during the 11th edition of Les Arcs Film Festival with the Femmes de Cinema Award.

Created by Les Arcs festival in partnership with Sisley in 2013, Femmes de Cinema is an initiative aimed at boosting the representation of women in the film industry, which remains for the most part male-dominated. The Femmes de Cinema Award celebrates visionary female filmmakers from Europe.

“Rocks” is a heartfelt drama set in East London and developed through workshops and improvisation with newcomers.

The story revolves around a teenager, Shola, and her younger brother, who are abandoned by their mother. Afraid to be separated from her brother if social services find out they are living alone, Shola sets out to evade the authorities’ notice at all costs.

Gavron’s follow up to “Suffragette” and “Brick Lane,...

European cinema-focused Alpine festival pushes on with efforts to improve female representation.

UK filmmaker Sarah Gavron and French actress and filmmaker Julie Gayet are set to participate in the Les Arcs Film Festival’s Femmes de Cinéma initiative aimed at boosting the representation of women in the film industry.

The 11th edition of the Alpine, European-cinema focused festival, runs December 14-21.

Gayet will give a masterclass about her career as an actress, director and producer as part of the festival’s third Femmes de Cinéma lab which consists of two workshops and a masterclass exploring what can be done to...

Chanson Douce

French director Lucie Borleteau heads into sophomore territory with Chanson Douce (translates as Lullaby), an adaptation of the novel by Leila Slimani (known as The Perfect Nanny stateside). Why Not Productions’ Pascal Caucheteaux and Gregoire Sorlat are producing alongside Nathalie Gastaldo Godeau from Pan-Europeenne, with France 3 Cinema serving as co-producer. Cinematographer Alexis Kavyrchine is lensing a cast which includes Karin Viard, Leila Bekhti and Antoine Reinartz. Borleteau’s first feature, 2014’s Fidelio: Alice’s Odyssey (read our review), competed in Locarno, winning Ariane Labed Best Actress, eventually snagging a Cesar nomination for Best First Feature.…...

Title: Fidelio Alice’s Odyssey (Fidelio, l’odyssée d’Alice) First Run Features Director: Lucie Borleteau Writer: Lucie Borleteau, Clara Bourreau , Mathilde Boisseleau Cast: Ariane Labed, Melvil Poupaud, Anders Danielsen Lie Running Time: 97 min Rated: Unrated (language, nudity, sex) Special Features: None On DVD And VOD 05/17/16 Alice (Ariane Labed, The Lobster) is a 30-year-old French woman in a passionate, loving relationship with her fiancé Felix (Anders Danielsen Lie, Reprise). The two spend as much time together as they can before her job as an engineer takes her away for several months aboard the freighter Fidelio. Once the freighter pulls from port, she discovers that the captain is Gaël (Melvil Poupaud, By the [ Read More ]

The post Fidelio Alice’s Odyssey DVD Review appeared first on Shockya.com.

After 11 days of celebrating magnificent and electric movies, the 24th Annual St. Louis International Film Festival (Sliff) concluded on Sunday evening. At the closing ceremony the International Alliance of Women Film Journalists (Awfj) presented awards to two women filmmakers. Cate Marquis (St. Louis Jewish Light) and myself were on hand to announce our winners – chosen by a panel of Awfj members.

Lucie Borleteau’s Fidelio: Alice’S Odyssey received the Eda for Best Female-Directed Narrative Feature, while Sophia Turkiewicz’s Once My Mother took the Eda for Best Female-Directed Documentary.

Actress Lucie Borleteau makes her feature directing debut with this insightful study of a woman situated in an almost exclusively male milieu. Sailor Alice (Ariane Labed) joins the freighter Fidelio as a replacement engineer, soon discovering that the captain, Gaël (Melvil Poupaud), is a man with whom she was once romantically involved. Though she leaves behind a fiancé on land (Anders Danielsen Lie,...

The St. Louis International Film Festival has announced the films nominated for the Awfj Eda Awards.

Awfj will partner once again with Sliff to recognize the Best Female-Directed Narrative Feature and Best Female-Directed Documentary. The 24th Annual Whitaker St. Louis International Film Festival will be held Nov. 5-15, 2015. Check out the full lineup here.

Here’s a glimpse of the films that have been selected:

Narratives

Fidelio: Alice’S Odyssey – Lucie Borleteau (France)

A rare woman in the man’s world of seafaring, 30-year-old Alice signs on as a replacement engineer on the freighter Fidélio. Although she loves her job and does it well, Alice remains a woman even when wearing greasy blue overalls, and there’s some doubt that the all-male crew will remain totally insensitive to her charms. The situation has further complications: Alice has a fiancé back on shore, but when she discovers that the Fidélio is captained by Gaël,...

★★★☆☆ The ironic naming of the cargo ship that director Lucie Borleteau uses in Fidelio: Alice's Journey (2014) comes into view as the 'Fidelio' departs the port of Marseille for the first time. Employed as the literal and figurative vessel for the emotional and spiritual odyssey undertaken by the film's eponymous voyager (Ariane Labed) it is mechanically unreliable, seeming to have more faulty parts than functional ones from the outset. Indeed, a member of the crew has died in suspicious circumstances before the anchor was cast.

The Cannes Film festival was an exceptional edition for French films this year. A focus on the rising generation of French actors and directors that have been highlighted in Cannes and will most certainly be the stars of tomorrow was compiled by Unifrance chief Isabelle Giordano.

They are a force to be reckoned with. Unifrance films is ready to bet that you will certainly hear about these ten talented people. They represent the French cinema of today and will soon be on the screens worldwide.

Emmanuelle Bercot

An actress and a director, Emmanuelle Bercot began by enrolling at the Cours Florent drama school and taking dancing lessons after her baccalaureate. She graduated from Femis in 1998, after winning the Prix du Jury at the Cannes Film Festival for her short film "Les Vacances," in 1997. After her first few roles in the films of Jean-François Richet and Michel Deville, her career as an actress took off when Claude Miller gave her one of the main roles in "La Classe de neige" (1998). The following year, she made the headlines with the medium-length film she directed called "La Puce," presented in the selection of Un Certain Regard at Cannes. This film tells of the love affair between a 35-year-old man and a 14-year-old girl, played by Isild Le Besco.

Her first feature-length film, "Clément" (2001), is about the life of a troubled woman who has one adventure after another with various men until she meets a 14-yearold boy. Her second film, "Backstage" (2004), continues to explore teenage angst through a relationship between a hit singer and a young obsessional fan. She earned her first critical and public acclaim with "On My Way" (2013), the third film written by the director for Catherine Deneuve, in which the star plays a woman who has decided to leave everything behind and hit the road in France.

She was indisputably the most talked about person during the Cannes Film Festival 2015, both as an actress and a director. Thierry Frémaux surprised everyone by announcing that "Standing Tall," Emmanuelle Bercot’s fourth feature-length film would open the 68th Cannes Film Festival. Emmanuelle Bercot says that she has rediscovered the social fiber of her beginnings with this tale of juvenile delinquency. After the enthusiastic and unanimous reception of her film, she won the Best Actress Award for her role as a woman under the influence of love in the film "Mon Roi" by Maïwenn, with whom she co-wrote the script for "Polisse," which won the Prix du Jury at the Cannes Film Festival in 2012

Thomas Bidegain

Thomas Bidegain may well be one of the best known French screenwriters in the profession today, but it took him ten years to achieve this status. His career path in film is anything but ordinary. He started out in the 1990s by distributing and producing independent American films: "Ice Storm" by Ang Lee and "Chasing Sleep" by Michael Walker. He came back to France and joined MK2 where he became director of distribution. In 1999, he returned to production for "Why Not." In 2007, he told the story of his attempt to stop smoking in "Arrêter de fumer tue," a personal diary that was turned into a documentary, then a book.

In the meantime, he began screenwriting and worked on several projects. In 2009, he wrote the screenplay for Jacques Audiard’s film, "A Prophet," alongside Nicolas Peufaillit and Abdel Raouf Dafri, which won the Grand Prix du Jury in 2009. He participated in Audiard’s next film, "Rust and Bone" and "Our Children" by Joachim Lafosse. He was also the co-writer for "Saint Laurent" by Bertrand Bonello. Winning a César for the best original script and a César for the best adaptation, he presented "Cowboys" at the Quinzaine des Réalisateurs in Cannes this year, his first film as a director. He is also co-writer of "Ni le ciel ni la terre" by Clément Cogitore, presented during the Semaine de la Critique, as well as co-writer of the script for Jacques Audiard’s latest film, "Dheepan," which won the Palme d’Or.

Louise Bourgoin

Louise Bourgoin attended the Ecole des Beaux Arts for five years, during which she began her career as a model. After she graduated from art school in 2004, she radically changed direction and became a presenter on cable TV. She was Miss Météo in Le Grand Journal on Canal + from 2006 to 2008. Her slot became essential viewing and attracted a wide audience, including the attention of the film industry.

She began her acting career in "The Girl from Monaco" by Anne Fontaine, and her performance earned her a César nomination for Most Promising Actress. This recognition led to a whole series of roles and launched her career in film. She headed the bill of several films in 2010 ("White as Snow" by Christophe Blanc, "Sweet Valentine" by Emma Luchini, and "Black Heaven" by Gilles Marchand). The same year, Luc Besson selected her for the leading role in "The Extraordinary Adventures of Adèle Blanc-Sec."

Since then, Louise Bourgoin has played in film after film, and has taken her first steps in the international scene with her part in the American film "The Love Punch" by Joel Hopkins. She attracted attention at the Cannes Film Festival this year with her unusual role in Laurent Larivière’s first film, "I Am a Soldier," presented at Un Certain Regard.

Anaïs Demoustier

Her passion for acting started at a very young age and rapidly pushed her to take drama classes. She auditioned, when still a teenager, and got her first role alongside Isabelle Huppert in "Time of the Wolf" by Michael Haneke. After this, her career was launched and she played in a series of films among which "L’Année suivante" by Isabelle Czajka, "Hellphone" by James Huth, "The Beautiful Person" by Christophe Honoré, "Sois sage" by Juliette Garcias, "Sweet Evil" by Olivier Coussemacq, "Dear Prudene" by Rebecca Zlotowski, "Snows of Kilimanjaro" by Robert Guédiguian, "Thérèse Desqueyroux" by Claude Miller, "Quai d’Orsay" by Bertrand Tavernier, "Paris Follies" by Marc Fitoussi, etc.

A filmography rich of 30 films for an actress who isn’t 30 years old yet. In 2014, the press talked about the blooming of Anaïs Demoustier because her face and poise became essential to cinema. Present in "Bird People" by Pascale Ferran, "Caprices" by Emmanuel Mouret, "À trois on y va" by Jérôme Bonnell and "The New Girlfriend" by François Ozon, she is Marguerite in the last Valérie Donzelli’s film, "Marguerite et Julien" screened in Official selection in Cannes.

Louis Garrel

The son of actress Brigitte Sy and the director Philippe Garrel, he began his career in film thanks to his father, who started filming him at the age of six in "Emergency Kisses," alongside his mother and his grandfather, Maurice Garrel. He went onto study drama at the Conservatoire National d’Art Dramatique. He made his real cinema debut in 2001 in the film "Ceci est mon corps" by Rodolphe Marconi. Two years later, he played opposite Michael Pitt and the future Bond girl, Eva Green, in "The Dreamers" by Bernardo Bertolucci.

He then starred in another of his father’s films, "Regular Lovers". His performance earned him the César for the Most Promising Actor in 2005. Since then, he has played alongside the greatest, such as Isabelle Huppert in "Ma mère" by Christophe Honoré. This marked the beginning of a long collaboration between the filmmaker and the actor. They worked together in the film "In Paris" with Romain Duris, then in 2007 in "Love Songs" with Ludivine Sagnier, in "The Beautiful Person" with Léa Seydoux, in "Making Plans" for Lena with Chiara Mostroianni and, finally, in " Beloved" with Catherine Deneuve. He also topped the bill with Valéria Bruni Tedeschi in "Actresses," whom he worked with again in 2013 in "A Castle in Italy."

In 2010, he directed a short film, "The Little Tailor," in which he directed Léa Seydoux. He performed once again in one of his father’s films, "A Burning Hot Summer," followed by "Jealousy." In 2014, he starred in Bertrand Bonello’s film "Saint Laurent," a role which led to another César nomination, but this time in the best supporting role category. His first feature-length film, "Two Friends," presented at a Certain Regard, was applauded by the critics. He also starred in "Mon Roi," Maïwenn’s fourth feature-length film, alongside Emmanuelle and Vincent Cassel, presented as part of the official selection.

Guillaume Gouix

After studying at the Conservatoire in Marseille and the Ecole Régionale d’Acteur de Cannes, Guillaume Gouix began his career in television. He played the male lead in "The Lion Cubs," by Claire Doyon, in 2003. Noted for his performance, especially the highly physical aspect of it and his intense gaze, he then played a series of supporting roles as a young hoodlum in "Les Mauvais joueurs" by Frédéric Balekdjian and in "Chacun sa nuit," by Jean-Marc Barr and Pascal Arnold. He featured in the 2007 war film "Intimate Enemies" by Florent Emilio Siri, thus confirming his taste for complex characters.

The following year, he was applauded for his performance in the film "Behind the Walls" by Christian Faure. In 2010, he starred in "22 Bullets" by Richard Berry and in 2011, he established his reputation with roles in "Nobody Else But You" by Gérald Hustache-Mathieu, "Et soudain, tout le monde me manque" by Jennifer Devoldere, and "Jimmy Rivière," Teddy Lussi-Modeste’s film debut.

He also appeared in "Midnight in Paris" by Woody Allen. He more recently starred in "Attila Marcel," by Sylvain Chomet, in which he played the lead role, in "French Women" by Audrey Dana, and "The Connection" by Cédric Jimenez with Jean Dujardin and Gilles Lelouche. He performed in three films presented at Cannes this year ("Les Anarchistes" by Elie Wajeman, which opened the Semaine de la Critique, "La Vie en grand" by Mathieu Vadepied, which closed the week, and in "Enragés" by Eric Hannezo, screened at the Cinéma de la Plage). He also directed his first short film "Alexis Ivanovitch, vous êtes mon héros" in 2011 and will soon start on a feature-length film, which is currently being written. He will be topping the bill in 2015 with "Braqueurs," a thriller by Julien Leclercq.

Ariane Labed

Born in Greece to French parents, Ariane Labed has always navigated between her two countries. She studied drama at the University of Provence and began her acting career treading the boards. After setting up a company combining dance and theater, Ariane Labed returned to live in Greece where she played at the National Theater of Athens. 2010 was the year of her first film, "Attenberg," directed by Athiná-Rachél Tsangári. "Alps" by Yorgos Lanthi-mos, the following year, confirmed the talent of this strangely charming actress. Two years later, she starred in "Before Midnight" by Richard Linklater where she played the role of Anna. The follow-up to "Before Sunrise" and "Before Sunset," this third part of the saga was a great success, making Labed known to a wider audience.

In 2014, she played a young sailor in "Fidelio, Alice’s Odyssey," who is torn between faithfulness and her desire to live her life. Winning the best actress award at the Locarno Film Festival and nominated for a César, the French actress gives a brilliant performance in Lucie Borleteau’s first feature-length film. She joined Yorgos Lanthimos in Cannes in 2015, where he won the Prix du Jury for his film "The Lobster."

Vincent Macaigne

Vincent Macaigne is the leading light in young French cinema. He joined the Conservatoire National Supérieur d’Art Dramatique in Paris in 1999, appearing on stage and assuming the role of director. His free adaptations of the great classics of literature and drama earned him public and critical acclaim. He directed "The Idiot" by Dostoïevski and presented "Au moins j’aurai laissé un beau cadavre in Avignon," inspired by Hamlet. He also rapidly made a name for himself in demanding art-house films. In 2001, he was seen for the first time in "Replay" by Catherine Corsini. In 2007, he starred in "On War" by Bertrand Bonello and in 2010, in "A Burning Hot Summer" by Philippe Garrel.

Since 2011, Vincent Macaigne’s presence in short, medium and full-length films has gradually increased. Faithful to his directors, he has starred in several of their films. As is the case with his friend Guillaume Brac, who directed him in "Le Naufragé," "Tonnerre" and "Un monde sans femmes." He was awarded the Grand Prix and the Prix Télérama at the Clermont-Ferrand International Short Film Festival, and the Prix Lutin for Best Actor in this film. Under the direction of Vincent Mariette, he played in "Les Lézards" then "Fool Circle." In 2013, we find the funny and touching thirty-something in "La fille du 14 juillet" by Antonin Peretjatko, "Age of Panic" by Justine Triet, and "2 Autumns, 3 Winters" by Sébastien Betbeder.

He was discovered by the general public at the 2013 Cannes Film Festival. Considered a figurehead of the revival of French cinema, Vincent has drawn the attention of the Cahiers du Cinéma, and even the British newspaper The Observer, which referred to him as the “new Gérard Depardieu”. In 2011, he directed "What We’ll Leave Behind," a very well-received medium-length film which won the Grand Prix at the Clermont-Ferrand Festival. He also starred in Mia Hansen-løve’s 2014 film "Eden." He plays one of the main roles in the actor Louis Garrel’s first feature-length film, "Two Friends," presented during the Semaine de la Critique. He also featured in his 2011 film, La Règle de trois.

Vimala Pons

From the Conservatoire National Supérieur d’Art Dramatique, where she attended drama classes even though she wanted to be a screenwriter, to circus tents, Vimala Pons is an acrobat in all senses of the word. The 29-year-old actress has established her physical and poetic presence in French art-house films. She began her career in film with Albert Dupontel in "Enfermés dehors" in 2006. She then starred in "Eden Log" by Franck Vestiel in 2007, then in "Granny’s Funeral" by Bruno Podalydès in 2012.

Since then, we have seen her cross France in a little blue dress in "La Fille du 14 juillet," (she plays the girl) by Antonin Peretjatko, and changing into a lioness in "Métamorphoses," by Christophe Honoré. The impetuous muse of French independent film, Vimala Pons played in "Vincent" by Thomas Salvador this year. The actress has made a name for herself in 2015, in particular with "Comme un avion" by Bruno Podalydès, "Je suis à vous tout de suite" by Baya Kasmi, "La vie très privée de Monsieur Sim" by Michel Leclerc, and "L’Ombre des femmes" by Philippe Garrel (presented at the Quinzaine des Réalisateurs this year in Cannes). She has also begun an international career, with a leading role in Paul Verhoeven’s latest film, "Elle."

Alice Winocour

The director Alice Winocour started out at Femis. After going into law, she returned to film and won three prizes for her short film "Kitchen: Prix TV5" for the best French-language short film, best international short film and the Silver Bear at the Festival of Nations (Ebensee). For "Magic Paris," she was awarded the jury prize at the St. Petersburg International Documentary, Short Film and Animated Film Festival.

She continued her career by writing the script for the film "Ordinary," by Vladimir Perisic. At the Cannes Film Festival 2012, Alice Winocour made a marked entry in the international arena with a film by a woman about women and the unchanging way of looking at them. In the film "Augustine," we are told the story of a professor and his patient, played by Vincent Lindon and Soko respectively. In 2015, she brought out her second feature-length film, "Maryland," which was screened in the Un Certain Regard section at the 68th Cannes Film Festival. She is also the co-writer of "Mustang," by Denis Gamze Ergüven, presented at the Quinzaine des Réalisateurs.

In early June, on the north-eastern coast of the Adriatic sea, a small film festival takes place over a few days. Situated in the bilingual littoral region of Slovenia and attracting international guests as well as cinema-goers, Kino Otok – Isola Cinema operates in three languages: Slovenian, Italian and English. I decided to visit, perhaps more than by the films themselves thrilled by the prospect of the first five days of the year at the beach and charmed by the picturesque, Venetian-style narrow streets of the maritime town providing shade from the scorching sun. However, it soon became clear that I needed to compromise: the festival was screening several gems that I regretfully missed during my festival circuit, and it seemed like the sunny beach would have to be sidetracked for at least some of the time. (I heard there were jellyfish in the water this year, anyway.)

One of the...

Read More: Stephen Colbert, Richard Gere and More Announced for Montclair Film Festival Conversation Series The 2015 Montclair Film Festival announced the winners of the first competition awards: Lucie Borleteau’s "Fidelio: Alice’s Odyssey" took home the Narrative Feature Prize, and Yury Bykov’s "The Fool," which was one of Indiewire's favorites at New Directors/New Films, was awarded a special jury prize for storytelling. The festival also premiered two awards in honor of the late David Carr and Bruce Sinosky, both of whom were Montclair residents. "We're thrilled to be launching these awards for our fourth installment, and to honor the diverse group of talented filmmakers," said Mff founder and Chairman Bob Feinberg in a statement. "This has been a significant year for us and it truly exemplifies the festival's impact and growth, as we continue to lay the groundwork for many more successful years ahead." "This year's...

Exclusive: Acclaimed drama one of three deals for UK indie.

UK indie distributor New Wave has concluded a deal with Celluloid Dreams for Jafar Panahi’s Berlinale Golden Bear winner Taxi.

Panahi’s drama, largely shot under cover due to restrictions on the filmmaker, also won the Fipresci prize at the Berlin Film Festival in February.

In Taxi, director Panahi captures life in contemporary Iran through passengers in a Tehran cab.

As the cab drives through the colourful streets of Tehran, it picks up a diverse mix of passengers, who speak to the driver, played by Panahi.

It proved one of the hot sellers for Paris-based Celluloid Dreams at last month’s European Film Market (Efm), snapped up by Memento for France and a host of other buyers in Germany, Italy and Colombia, among others.

Kino Lorber acquired North American rights.

Panahi has been banned from making films in his homeland, or leaving...

Charlotte Gainsbourg and Chiara Mastroianni in Benoît Jacquot's uncoupled 3 Hearts (3 Coeurs), also starring Benoît Poelvoorde

Anne-Dominique Toussaint’s Parisian Galerie Cinema comes to New York with an exhibition featuring photos by Cédric Klapisch, Atiq Rahimi, Edward Lachman, Agnès Godard, James Franco, Vincent Perez, Kate Barry, Harry Gruyaert and Raymond Depardon as a special event of the 20th Anniversary of Rendez-Vous with French Cinema.

The Bling Ring director Sofia Coppola, Julianne Moore during the filming of Todd Haynes's Far From Heaven, and Vincent Perez's Cyrano De Bergerac co-star Gérard Depardieu will be among the portraits on display at the Cultural Services of the French Embassy.

Sofia Coppola by Kate Barry © Galerie Cinema

Nathalie Baye, Guillaume Canet, Cédric Kahn, Christophe Honoré, Celine Sallette, Mélanie Laurent, Abd Al Malik, Frédéric Tellier, Armel Hostiou, Thomas Cailley, Stéphane Demoustier, Cédric Anger, Alain Chabat, Claire Burger, Cédric Jimenez, Lucie Borleteau and Ariane Lebed...

Designer biopic leads the pack with 10 nominations; Kristen Stewart, Marion Cotillard and Juliette Binoche in the running for actress awards.Scroll down for full list of nominees

Bertrand Bonello’s Saint Laurent and Olivier Assays’ Sils Maria are the hot favourites in France’s 40th annual Cesar awards.

France’s Academy of Cinema Arts and Sciences unveiled the nominations for this year’s César Awards at its traditional news conference at Le Fouquet’s restaurant on the Champs Elysées on Friday morning.

Biopic Saint Laurent - exploring fashion designer Yves Saint Laurent’s life from 1967 to 1976 - led the pack with 10 nominations including best film, best director for Bonello, best actor for Gaspard Ulliel and best supporting actor for Louis Garrel.

Jalil Lespert’s rival biopic, Yves Saint Laurent, secured seven nominations. While it missed out in the best film and director categories, it scored nods with Pierre Niney for best actor, Charlotte Le Bon for best...

January 11 Update: Andrey Zvyagintsev’s Oscar shortlisted Russian film and Golden Globe nominee earned the Fipreseci Prize while Eastern European cinema dominated the 26th Palm Springs International Film Festival’s juried awards.

Update: The awards were handed out on January 10 as the January 2-12 festival draws to a close. Audience Award winners were announced late on January 11 (see below).

“This year’s festival has been a huge success on all fronts, with consistently packed theatres, terrific audience response to the line-up of films and special programmes and record film-maker and industry attendance,” said festival director Darryl Macdonald.

“I’m especially pleased that our Another Europe showcase and Cine Latino programme received such a warm response from audiences and critics alike. I’m equally delighted with the juries’ award choices, though given the outstanding overall quality of the films on view at this year’s event I wish we could present awards to each and every one of...

Andrey Zvyagintsev’s Oscar shortlisted Russian film and Golden Globe nominee earned the Fipreseci Prize while Eastern European cinema dominated the 26th Palm Springs International Film Festival’s juried awards.

The awards were handed out on January 10 as the January 2-12 festival draws to a close. Audience Award winners will be updated here on January 11.

“This year’s festival has been a huge success on all fronts, with consistently packed theatres, terrific audience response to the line-up of films and special programmes and record film-maker and industry attendance,” said festival director Darryl Macdonald.

“I’m especially pleased that our Another Europe showcase and Cine Latino programme received such a warm response from audiences and critics alike. I’m equally delighted with the juries’ award choices, though given the outstanding overall quality of the films on view at this year’s event I wish we could present awards to each and every one of them.”

“Eastern European...

Go Ask Alice: Borleteau’s Debut Examines Desire, Gender, and Maturity

Sure to be described as “European,” seemingly in the sense that it relays a familiar dynamic and predicament generally seen from a male perspective in English language cinema, actress turned director Lucie Borleteau makes an astute debut with Fidelio: Alice’s Journey. An exciting international coproduction featuring well known Greek, Norwegian and French actors, Borleteau creates an impressive character arc for its lead protagonist while sidestepping clichés of a woman navigating male spheres at almost every turn as it examines, with refreshing frankness, realities of desire vs. the eponymous notion for which it’s named.

Replacing an engineer that’s mysteriously died on the vessel Fidelio, sailor Alice (Ariane Labed) leaves behind her intense new relationship with Felix (Anders Danielson Lie). Once aboard, she discovers that Gael (Melville Poupaud) is the captain, a man she had a torrid...

Other winners include Labyrinth of Lies, These Are The Rules, Underdog, Hyena, Frank.

Les Arcs European Film Festival wrapped yesterday with its top award, The Cristal Arrow, going to Yury Kykov’s The Fool from Russia. The film also won the cinematography prize for Kirill Klepalov and it won the young jury prize.

The jury award went to Ognjen Svilicic’s These Are The Rules from Croatia.

German film Labyrinth of Lies won both the audience award and a special jury mention.

The full list of winners from Les Arcs 2014:

Cristal Arrow Award: The Fool by Yury Bykov (Russia)

Jury Award: These are the rules by Ognjen Svilicic (Croatia)

Special Jury Mention: Labyrinth of Lies by Giulio Ricciarelli (Germany)

Best Actress Award: Bianca Kronlöf in Underdog (Sweden)

Best Actor Award: Peter Ferdinando in Hyena (UK)

Best Music Award: Stephen Rennicks for Frank (Ireland)

Best Photography Award: Kirill Klepalov for The Fool (Russia)

Audience Choice Prize: Labyrinth...

The 26th annual Palm Springs International Film Festival (Psiff) has announced its complete line-up including Premieres, New Voices/New Visions and Modern Masters.

All in all 192 films from 65 countries, including 65 premieres (seven world, five international, 20 North American and 33 Us) will screen from January 2-12.

Premieres including Some Kind Of Love (Canada), Don Quixote: The Ingenious Gentleman Of La Mancha (USA) starring James Franco and Twenty-Five Palms from Luxembourg, a documentary about the festival’s quarter-century anniversary.

Among the international premieres are: Accused (Netherlands), The Grandad (Iceland) and Arteholic (Germany), a documentary featuring Udo Kier and Lars von Trier, among others.

The Secret Screening will take place on January 6.

The New Voices/New Visions Award focuses on directors whose feature debuts are currently without Us distribution.

The selections are: Afterlife (Hungary), Director Virág Zomborácz; Chubby (Belgium), Bruno Deville; Fidelio, Alice’s Journey (France), Lucie Borleteau; Grand Street (USA), Lex Sidon; Henri Henri (Canada), Martin Talbot; Manpower (Israel), [link...

The 26th annual Palm Springs International Film Festival (Psiff) has announced its complete line-up including Premieres, New Voices/New Visions and Modern Masters.

All in all 192 films from 65 countries, including 65 premieres (seven world, five international, 20 North American and 33 Us) will screen from January 2-12.

Premieres including Some Kind Of Love (Canada), Don Quixote: The Ingenious Gentleman Of La Mancha (USA) starring James Franco and Twenty-Five Palms from Luxembourg, a documentary about the festival’s quarter-century anniversary.

Among the international premieres are: Accused (Netherlands), The Grandad (Iceland) and Arteholic (Germany), a documentary featuring Udo Kier and Lars von Trier, among others.

The Secret Screening will take place on January 6.

The New Voices/New Visions Award focuses on directors whose feature debuts are currently without Us distribution.

The selections are: Afterlife (Hungary), Director Virág Zomborácz; Chubby (Belgium), Bruno Deville; Fidelio, Alice’s Journey (France), Lucie Borleteau; Grand Street (USA), Lex Sidon; Henri Henri (Canada), Martin Talbot; Manpower (Israel), [link...

Ruben Ostlund’s Force Majeure to screen atop 3,200m high Aiguille Rouge Mountain at Alpine festival.

Susanne Bier’s A Second Chance, Lenny Abrahamson’s Frank and Gerard Johnson’s Hyena are among the titles set to compete at the sixth edition of Les Arcs European Film Festival (Dec 13-20) in the heart of the French Alps.

Festival co-founders Pierre Emmanuel Fleurantin and Guillaume Calop said the event’s focus on Europe was more relevant than ever as its citizens posed questions about the future of the region amid the ongoing economic crisis.

“We continue to believe in a united Europe where together we can safeguard our cultures and ways of life without renouncing progress,” they said in a joint statement. “Across the new line-up, each country shows off the best of its cinema.”

The titles in the competition, selected by artistic director Frédéric Boyer, will compete for the festival’s top prize, the Crystal...

Ivano de Matteo’s Italian film to receive promotional support from Europa Cinemas.

Italian film The Dinner (i Nostri Ragazzi), directed by Ivano de Matteo has won the Europa Cinemas Label as Best European Film in the Venice Days section of the Venice Film Festival (Aug 27 - Sept 6). The jury comprised four exhibitors from the network.

The Dinner will now benefit from promotional support from Europa Cinemas and better exhibition due to a financial incentive for network cinemas to include it in their programme schedule.

The drama, about a family dinner going horribly wrong, is inspired by Herman Koch’s worldwide bestselling novel of the same name, which was previously adapted as a Dutch-language film by Menno Meyjes and is also slated for an adaptation starring Cate Blanchett.

The jury said: “Ivano de Matteo’s film is a confident, beautifully written and extremely well constructed drama. It manages to articulate many powerful themes – alienation between children and their...

From What is Before, a 338-minute film by Filipino director Lav Diaz, has won the Golden Leopard, grand prize of the 67th Locarno Film Festival. The moody and atmospheric black-and-white film depicts rising levels of fear, violence and suspicion in a small village, reflecting the widespread impact of Ferdinand Marcos’ regime, which imposed martial law in the 1970s. The film also took three prizes from the festival’s independent juries, including the Fipresci award.

Pedro Costa won Best Director for Cavalo Dinheiro, another film of intense visual beauty, set in the former Portuguese colony of Cape Verde, off the coast of West Africa. The film examines collective memory through the figure of an elderly man who wanders through hospital corridors, abandoned streets and ruined factories, in limbo between past and present, and under the ominous surveillance of the military.

Best Actress went to Ariane Labed, who made her screen breakthrough...

Locarno’s Golden Leopard has been awarded to Filipino director Lav Diaz’s five-and-a-half-hour epic From What Is Before.Scroll down for full list of winners

The film, which has the Filipino title Mula sa kung ano ang noon, also picked up the Fipresci International Critics Prize, the Environment is Quality of Life Prize, and the International Federation of Film Societies’ (Iffs) Don Quixote Prize.

On learning that he had won Locarno’s top honour, Diaz said that he wanted to dedicate the award to his father.

“He brought me cinema, he’s a cinema addict, and he started this passion in me,” said Diaz.

“For the Filipino people, it’s for them, for their struggle, and then I would like to dedicate it to all serious filmmakers in the world, to Pedro Costa, he’s my brother and I love his work, to Matias Pineiro, and to the makers of all the other films in the...

Lav Diaz's From What Is Before has won the Golden Leopard at the 67th Locarno Film Festival. "Is this the victory of Slow Cinema over Fast Cinema?" asks the festival. "Everything is Cinema for me, so I don't want to label things," says Diaz. Pedro Costa's won Best Director for Horse Money, "the one film in Locarno that feels entirely new," writes Adam Cook in the Notebook. A special jury award goes to Alex Ross Perry's Listen Up Philip. The Leopard for the Best Actor goes to Artem Bystov for his performance in Yuri Bykov's The Fool, and Best Actress goes to Ariane Labed for hers in Lucie Borleteau's Fidelio, Alice’s Journey. And a Special Mention goes to Gabriel Mascaro for August Winds. » - David Hudson...

Lav Diaz's From What Is Before has won the Golden Leopard at the 67th Locarno Film Festival. "Is this the victory of Slow Cinema over Fast Cinema?" asks the festival. "Everything is Cinema for me, so I don't want to label things," says Diaz. Pedro Costa's won Best Director for Horse Money, "the one film in Locarno that feels entirely new," writes Adam Cook in the Notebook. A special jury award goes to Alex Ross Perry's Listen Up Philip. The Leopard for the Best Actor goes to Artem Bystov for his performance in Yuri Bykov's The Fool, and Best Actress goes to Ariane Labed for hers in Lucie Borleteau's Fidelio, Alice’s Journey. And a Special Mention goes to Gabriel Mascaro for August Winds. » - David Hudson...

A mechanic in the French navy, Alice (Ariane Labed) spends much of her life on board cargo ships. Her new boyfriend Félix, a Norwegian graphic novelist, waits patiently for her at home. She is called to serve on the Fidelio to replace a man who has died on board. Having taken over the dead man’s cabin, she peruses his belongings with curiosity, especially a diary which reveals his lifelong unluckiness in love. Meanwhile, Alice’s own love life becomes complicated when the ship’s captain turns out to be a lover from her student days.

If Fidelio were a Hollywood movie, Alice would never be able to forget that she is a woman, and most of the male crew would be against her, apart from one or two allies. Director Lucie Borleteau overturns our expectations of both male and female behaviour, however. Of course, as the only woman on board,...

Above: Pedro Costa's Horse Money

The Locarno Film Festival has announced their lineup for the 67th edition, taking place this August between the 6th and 16th. It speaks for itself, but, um, wow...

"Every film festival, be it small or large, claims to offer, if not an account of the state of things, then an updated map of the art form and the world it seeks to represent. This cartography should show both the major routes and the byways, along with essential places to visit and those that are more unusual. The Festival del film Locarno is no exception to the rule, and I think that looking through the program you will be able to distinguish the route map for this edition." — Carlo Chatrian, Artistic Director

Above: Matías Piñeiro's The Princess of France

Concorso Internazionale (Official Competition)

A Blast (Syllas Tzoumerkas, Greece/Germany/Netherlands)

Alive (Jungbum Park, South Korea)

Horse Money (Pedro Costa,...

13 of the 17 films competing for the Golden Leopard are world premieres; Juliette Binoche to receive Excellence Award.

Full details of the line-up for the 67th Locarno Film Festival, which runs August 6-16, were unveiled at a press conference in the Swiss capital Berne today.

13 of the 17 films competing for the Golden Leopard in the festival’s International Competition section are world premiers including Syllas Tzoumerkas’s A Blast [pictured], Jungbum Park’s Alive (South Korea), Paul Vecchiali’s White Nights On The Pier (France) and Yury Bykov’s The Fool (Russia). International premieres include Alex Ross Perry’s hotly antipated Us comedy Listen Up Philip starring Jason Schwartzman who is expected to attend.

The Piazza Grande line-up includes the international premieres of Eran Riklis’ Dancing Arabs, Aaron Katz and Martha Stephens’ critically acclaimed Iceland set Land Ho! Which world premiered at Sundance, and Olivier Assayas’ Clouds Of Sils Maria, which played in competition in Cannes. World premieres...

Rating: 4.0/5.0

Chicago – Can dedication overcome all odds? Film has taught us for years that it is the truly justified, righteous, and committed that will prevail. Of course, life is not that simple. And the films of the masterful French director Claire Denis often brilliantly portray the true complexity of life. Her newest film, “White Material,” completes an amazing 2010 one-two punch with the excellent “35 Shots of Rum” released earlier this year. She’s one of our best international filmmakers.

The dedication I speak of belongs to Maria, perfectly played by one of our best living actresses, Isabelle Huppert. One could call Maria dedicated or merely stubborn but as “White Material” progresses it becomes clear that whatever you call her, her story is unlikely to end happily. Maria runs a coffee plantation in an unnamed African country in tumultuous times. As the film opens, she is traveling back to her plantation and...