The Varilux French Film Festival comes to 50 Brazilian cities

23 NOVEMBER 2021

From November 24 through December 8, the 2021 edition of the French Film Varilux Panorama in Brazil, organized in partnership with Unifrance, the Ambassade France, and the Alliances Francaises, will present a selection of 18 French films throughout the country.

The openings in São Paulo and Rio de Janeiro will take place in the presence of Philippe Le Guay(The Man in the Basement), and actors Benjamin Voisin (Lost Illusions), Sami Outalbali (A Tale of Love and Desire), and Olivier Rabourdin (Black Box).

In a spirit of solidarity with exhibitors, who have been greatly affected by the pandemic, the opening night in Rio was moved from the usual large Odeon cinema to the Estação Rio theaters in the Botafogo neighborhood, one of the most traditional and important movie houses for the presence of independent cinema in Rio, which is currently under threat of eviction.

In Rio, for the first time, the festival will be screened in its entirety in a 500-seat open-air hall with a giant screen (photo below), a space set up for the festival in the beautiful Lage Park, which was the location for the shoot of That Man from Rio by Philippe De Broca. The festival will also pay tribute to Jean-Paul Belmondo with a selection of five films in partnership with the Ambassade de France in Brazil.

The classic film selected for this year's edition is The Things of Life by Claude Sautet. Many discussions and educational activities have also been organized around the documentary Legacy, notre héritage by Yann Arthus-Bertrand and the animation film The Crossing by Florence Miailhe.