UniFrance will be based at Cannes this year from May 14 through 25 at the UniFrance Terrace, a space that was inaugurated in 2018, located near the Palais des Festivals. This terrace space will welcome professionals in the film export sector, crew members from the French films selected in the various festival sections, and international media representatives. Our Terrace will host many events, with a special emphasis this year on the 70th anniversary of UniFrance.
The UniFrance Terrace in Cannes: A venue dedicated to serving French cinema in the international arena
Once again designed by the Maison Sarah Lavoine, the UniFrance Terrace will be installed for the second year at 5 rue des Belges, a few steps from the Palais des Festivals in a space divided into three levels where UniFrance teams will host meetings with foreign film festival directors and programmers, international distributors, sales agents, film market directors, film and television attachés, cultural consultants, partner organizations, and the full range of professionals working in the export sector.
International journalists will also be welcomed at our Terrace, with interviews organized with crew members from the French films presented in Cannes (notably the films by Céline Sciamma, Justine Triet, Claude Lelouch, Arnaud Desplechin, and Rebecca Zlotowski, to name just a few).
The UniFrance Terrace: a unique location aimed at fostering networking opportunities and promoting French films and artists in strategic export markets, as well as reaching out to new audiences and new distributors around the world, with a view to consolidating French cinema's status as the world's second biggest film exporter.
This edition of the Cannes Film Festival will also be an opportunity to celebrate UniFrance's 70th anniversary—70 years serving French cinema!—with, in particular, the launch of the UniFrance e-boutique, whose offerings include two books published in bilingual editions: French Cinema Worldwide, published by Le Cherche Midi, which recounts the adventures of UniFrance since its inception in 1949, and French Cinema in 2018 in 70 Films, jointly published with Les Fiches du Cinéma; as well as a collector's poster of 4XD, the short film produced for UniFrance by Philippe Labro in 1964 (a limited series of 70 numbered posters). This poster is jointly produced by Plakat.
Program and Highlights
UNIFRANCE CELBRATES ITS 70TH ANNIVERSARY!
Monday, May 20, will be reserved as a day of anniversary celebrations for UniFrance, and will include several special events and high points.
- 9:30 a.m.—Press Breakfast, with the presentation of the new study "10 Years of French Cinema at International Festivals"
- 3 p.m. (CNC beach)—Film Export Luncheon to celebrate UniFrance's 70th anniversary
- 7 p.m.—red carpet entrance in honor of UniFrance's 70th anniversary, with the presence of 70 leading industry personalities who have made French cinema shine on the international stage. In collaboration with the Cannes Film Festival.
- 70th Anniversary Party (invitation only). In partnership with Lacoste.
"FRENCH CINEMA MON AMOUR" PHOTOGRAPHY EXHIBITION
A new exhibition will be held at the UniFrance Terrace throughout the festival, showcasing 20 portraits of movie industry artists by the photographer Philippe Quaisse, taken back stage at the Rendez-Vous with French Cinema in Paris in January this year. In partnership with Madame Figaro and with support from Parfums Givenchy, Massato Paris, and Studio 11:11.
"WE LOVE FRENCH VR"
In only a few years, French VR has conquered the world. UniFrance is highlighting this international renown by presenting the crème de la crème of recent VR works at our Terrace. From May 16 to 19, in collaboration with Diversion cinema, visitors will have the chance to discover three new works by Jan Kounen: -22.7°C, 7 Lives, and Ayahuasca (Kosmik journey). A selection of other films will also be on view, including Fan Club by Vincent Ravalec and the first episode ("First Light") of the multi-award-winning series Gloomy Eyes.
On Saturday, May 18, from 10 a.m. to 12 p.m., French VR will be in the spotlight during a special encounter between up-and-coming French artists and around fifty international professionals. Representatives from prestigious international film festivals and events (Venice, Berlin, FNC-Montreal, Tribeca), cultural institutions (Maxxi, Centre Phi), buyers (Arte, Orange, Otherset, Within), and producers (a_Bahn, Sony, Baobab) will take part in this event.
QUEER FILM MARKET
On May 18, from 2 p.m. to 4 p.m., the 5th Queer Film Market will be held in the presence of all of the sales agents and buyers of French films in competition for the Queer Palm Award (Cannes' LGBT Prize), the Queer Palm jury (helmed this year by Virginie Ledoyen), and programmers of LBBTQ+ festivals.
INTERNATIONAL STUDENTS' AWARD UNIFRANCE / FRANCE CULTURE
For the fourth year, UniFrance continues its partnership with France Culture with the presentation of the International Students' Award. This year, seven international film schools gave their students the opportunity to vote for their favorite film and to write a film review. The winning review will be published on the UniFrance website. The winning film be announced on Sunday, May 19, at 11 a.m. at the UniFrance Terrace, in the presence of UniFrance president Serge Toubiana, UniFrance executive director Isabelle Giordano, as well as Sibyle Veil, CEO of Radio France, and Sandrine Treiner, director of France Culture. They will also present the France Culture Cinéma Consécration Prize and the France Culture Cinéma des Étudiants Prize. The awards ceremony will be followed by a cocktail reception (invitation only).
The 5 French films in competition:
The Night Eats the World by Dominique Rocher – Fantasy
Le Grand Bal by Laetitia Carton – Documentary
Mutafukaz by Shojirou Nishimi & Run – Animation
The Trouble-Shooter by Julien Guetta – Comedy
A Paris Education by Jean Paul Civeyrac – Drama
The 7 participating film schools:
The Barbican Young Programmers of the Barbican Center (London, UK)
ESAV - École Supérieure d'Audiovisuel Marrakech (Marrakech, Morocco)
ECAL - École Cantonale d'Art de Lausanne (Renens, Switzerland)
Milano Civica Scuola di Cinema, (Milan, Italy)
Universidad del Cine Buenos Aires (UCINE) (Buenos Aires, Argentina)
PSE Institute School of Media (Phnom Penh, Cambodia)
The Steve Tisch School of Film and Television (Tel Aviv, Israel)
VARIETY / UNIFRANCE PANEL DISCUSSION: "NEW FACES OF FRENCH CINEMA"
On Monday, May 20, Variety will focus the attention of international media and industry professionals on four emerging talents in the French movie industry, with a special editorial published on the same date.
FRANCO-GERMAN FILM MEETINGS
On May 21, at 3:30 p.m., UniFrance will host the Board Meeting of the Franco-German Film Academy at the UniFrance Terrace. This meeting will include the election of new members of the Academy's Committee for the period of 2019-2022. The newly elected Committee will then proceed to elect its president, vice-presidents, and treasurer. An invitation-only cocktail reception will be held following the meeting, at 5 p.m., bringing together members of UniFrance and guests
to celebrate the newly elected Committee members and to discuss the next edition of the Franco-German Film Meetings, which will take place on November 26 and 27, 2019, in Mulhouse, France.
SHORT FILMS AT THE UNIFRANCE TERRACE
On May 23, from 9:30 a.m. to 11:00 a.m., UniFrance will host a Breakfast for Producers of short films who are members of UniFrance (invitation only).
On May 23, from 6:30 p.m. to 8:00 p.m.:
Presentation of the 17th UniFrance Short Film Prize and the Distributor's Prize, in the presence of the prizewinners (invitation only).
To refresh your memories, some key figures for French cinema abroad in 2018:
- 41.4 million admissions outside France
- €249.2 million generated in box office ticket sales in foreign theaters
- 25.5 million admissions registered by French-language films
- 692 French films shown in theaters abroad
- 6 French films attracted over 1 million spectators abroad
- 446 trips made by French actors and directors to accompany the presentation of their films (shorts and features) in foreign countries, with support from UniFrance
The UniFrance Terrace is designed by the Maison Sarah Lavoine.
In 2019, the UniFrance Terrace in Cannes benefits from support from: Lacoste, Renault, TitraFilm, Nespresso, Dammann Frères, and San Pellegrino.
Suppliers: Piper-Heidsieck and Estandon.
Alcohol abuse is dangerous for health, consume with moderation.
