French composer Alexandre Desplat will be the president of the jury of the 71st edition of the Mostra, which will take place August 27 through September 6.
Four French films in the Official Selection (and 8 films in total if we include co-productions): the Official Competition of the 2014 Venice Film Festival opens its doors wide to French cinema. Xavier Beauvois is a regular presence (he presented To Matthew and The Little Lieutenant there), as is Benoit Jacquot (Seventh Heaven, Keep it Quiet, Tosca, and The Untouchable were revealed at the event). While Alix Delaporte returns after the revelation of Angèle et Tony, and David Oelhoffen will be attendng for the first time.
In the Orizzonti section, the outrageous duo Gustave Kervern and Benoît Delépine will present their highly awaited Near Death Experience, with Michel Houellebecq hovering between life and death, and Quentin Dupieux will offer a new facet of his borderline world, via Reality, starring Alain Chabat and Élodie Bouchez.
international Critics' Week will screen the debut feature by producer Stéphane Demoustier, about the world of tennis, starring Olivier Gourmet and Valeria Bruni-Tedeschi.
Venice Days will feature a film from a new auteur (Summer Nights) and established art-house directors (Laurent Cantet and Christophe Honoré).
Meanwhile, at Venice Classics, Mouchette by Robert Bresson is revived in a sparkling new digital version, along with Maurice Pialat's short film, L'Amour existe.
OFFICIAL SELECTION
French films (or French co-productions) in Venezia 71 (Competition)
3 Hearts by Benoit Jacquot
The Price of Fame by Xavier Beauvois
The Last Hammer Blow by Alix Delaporte
Far From Men by David Oelhoffen
Black Souls by Francesco Munzi (co-production)
A Pigeon Sat on a Branch Reflecting on Existence by Roy Andersson (co-production)
The Cut by Fatih Akin (co-production)
Pasolini by Abel Ferrara (co-production)
French films (or French co-productions) Out of Competition
Tsili by Amos Gitaï (co-production)
The Old Man of Belem by Manoel De Oliveira (short film) (co-production)
Nymphomaniac - Part 2 (Director's Cut) by Lars Von Trier (co-production)
ORIZZONTI
Near Death Experience by Benoît Delépine & Gustave Kervern
Reality by Quentin Dupieux
Line of Credit, by Salomé Alexi (co-production)
Heaven Knows What by Josh Safdie & Benny Safdie (co-production)
These Are the Rules by Ognjen Svilicic (co-production)
The President by Mohsen Makhmalbaf (co-production)
Ferdinand Knapp by Andrea Baldini (short film)
Mademoiselle by Guillaume Gouix (short film)
INTERNATIONAL CRITICS' WEEK
40-Love by Stéphane Demoustier
Flapping in the Middle of Nowhere by Hoang Diep Nguyen (co-production)
VENICE DAYS
Return to Ithaca by Laurent Cantet
Summer Nights by Mario Fanfani
Metamorphosis by Christophe Honoré
Between 10 and 12 by Peter Hoogendoom (co-production)
