From September 20 through 24 this year, Unifrance is hosting the 4th Festival de Cine Frances (French Film Festival) in Mexico City, in collaboration with Cinepolis multiplexes, the distributor Cinemas Nueva Era, IMCINE, the French Embassy in Mexico City, and the EFM (an association of French companies in Mexico).
The artistic delegation is composed of Danièle Thompson and Dani for “Fauteuils d’orchestre” (aka “Avenue Montaigne” and “Orchestra Seats”), Nicole Garcia for “Selon Charlie” (“Charlie Says…”), Maryline Canto for “L’Ivresse du pouvoir” (“The Comedy of Power”), Joana Preiss for “Ma mère” (“My Mother”), Charles Belmont and Salomé Blechmans for “Qui de nous deux,” Kim Chapiron and Roxanne Mesquida for “Sheitan,” Julie Lopes-Curval for “Toi et moi,” Thomas de Thier for “Des plumes dans la tête” (“Feathers in My Head”), Steve Suissa for “Le Grand Rôle” (“The Great Role”), and Thierry Piantanida for “La Planète Blanche” (“The White Planet”).
All the films to be showcased in Mexico City were selected by Mexican distributors, and all are awaiting upcoming release in Mexican theaters.
Unifrance is also gearing up for the French Cinema Tour, an event that will kick off September 22 and travel to 50 Mexican cities. A number of the French creative crews present in Mexico City will also accompany their films to the cities of Monterrey, Guadalajara, and Metepec to meet with local audiences and members of the public.
It is worth noting that after registering 3 million admissions to French films in 2005, Mexico now ranks among the leading countries in the Latin American sub-continent in terms of attendance figures for French films. Admissions to French films in the first six months of 2006 have already reached 2.7 million.
