Unifrance takes French films around the world - June 2007

BERLIN – FRENCH FILM FESTIVAL (Feature films)
The event opened with a screening of The Untouchable by Benoit Jacquot, in the presence of lead actress Isild le Besco and the director, who also participated in the On Set with French Cinema program.

MUNICH INTERNATIONAL FILM FESTIVAL (Feature films)
Jacques Fieschi for La Californie, Jean and Louis Becker for Conversations With My Gardener, Gabriel Le Bomin for Antonin’s Stories, Marie and René Féret for Il a suffi que maman s'en aille, Jérôme Bonnell for Waiting for Someone, Laurent Herbiet for The Colonel, Jean-Pierre Darroussin and Valérie Stroh for Premonition, Nicolas Philibert for Retour en Normandie, and Robin Renucci for Sempre Vivu!

SHANGHAI INTERNATIONAL FILM FESTIVAL (Feature films)
Gabriel Le Bonin for Antonin’s Stories and Virginie Wagon for L'Enfant d'une autre.

MOSCOW INTERNATIONAL FILM FESTIVAL (Feature films)
François Ozon for Angel, Christian Monnier and Florian Frin for Le Chien, Pascale Ferran for Lady Chatterley, Laurent Tirard for Molière, and Claude Lelouch and Dominique Pinon for Crossed Tracks.

KARLOVY VARY INTERNATIONAL FILM FESTIVAL (Feature films)
Romola Garaï for Angel, Jean and Louis Becker for Conversations With My Gardener, Alanté Kavaïté for Fissures, Jeanne Waltz for A Parting Shot, Jean-Pierre Darroussin and Valérie Stroh for Premonition, and Laurent Salgues for Buried Dreams (aka Dreams of Dust).

BROOKLYN INTERNATIONAL FILM FESTIVAL (Short films)
Manuel Schapira for Décroche! and Alice Winocour for Magic Paris.

FESTROIA FILM FESTIVAL (Short films) Sylvain Rigollot for Clandestino and Olivier Bouffard for Ce que je vous dois.

VALENCIA CINEMA JOVE FILM FESTIVAL (Short films)
Nicolas Lasnibat for Thirty Years.

Festivals/Awards

MOSCOW FILM INTERNATIONAL FESTIVAL (Feature films)
Fabrice Luchini for Molière - Best Actor

BROOKLYN INTERNATIONAL FILM FESTIVAL (Short films)
Raymond by Fabrice Le Nezet, François Roisin and Jules Janaud – Best Film
Experimental Dog Days by Geoffroy de Crécy – Best Animated Film

CRACOW FILM FESTIVAL (Short films)
Mon Dernier Rôle by Olivier Ayache-Vidal – Student Jury Prize

HUESCA INTERNATIONAL SHORT FILM FESTIVAL (Short films)
Deweneti by Diana Gaye – Special Jury Mention
Le Dîner by Cécile Vernant – Special Jury Mention
La Leçon de danse by Philippe Prouff – Critics’ Award

HAMBURG INTERNATIONAL SHORT FILM FESTIVAL (Short films)
La Leçon de guitare by Martin Ritt – Special Mention in the International Competition and SKODA Audience Award

ARCIPELAGO – INTERNATIONAL FESTIVAL OF FILMS & NEW IMAGES, ROME - (Short films)
Thirty Years by Nicolas Lasnibat – Special Jury Prize
Pièces détachées by Sébastien Drouin – Best Film Shot on Digital Video

FESTROIA FILM FESTIVAL (Short films)
Clandestino by Sylvain Rigollot – Special Mention

ST. PETERSBURG MESSAGE TO MAN FILM FESTIVAL - (Short films)
Magic Paris by Alice Winocour - Grand Prize

Grants awarded to support commercial release:

Barthélémy Grossman for the release of 13m2 in Switzerland, Luc Besson for the release of Arthur and the Minimoys in Japan, Sophie Marceau for the release of Trivial in Belgium, Sijie Dai for the release of The Chinese Botanists’ Daughters in Germany, Martin Valente and François Berléand for the release of Fragile(s) in Switzerland, Marie Gillain for the release of Fragile(s) en Belgium, Thomas Gilou for the release of Michou d'Auber in Quebec, and André Téchiné for the release of The Witnesses in Italy.

Interviews held with foreign media in France:

To coincide with a period of heightened exposure for French films in Mexico this fall (with upcoming releases and the Unifrance traveling festival to be held from November 8-11, 2007), the following French talent were interviewed by journalists from the TV cinema program Canal Once, the daily periodical Jornada, and the news weekly Proceso: Eléonore Faucher, Ariane Ascaride, Lola Naymark for A Common Thread, Philippe Le Guay and Anne Consigny for Du jour au lendemain, Julie Gavras for Blame it on Fidel, Charles Berling for The Man of My Life, Jean-Pierre Améris Call Me Elizabeth, Isabelle Mergault and Michel Blanc for You Are So Beautiful, François Cluzet for Tell No One, Eric Lartigau for I Do: How to Get Married and Stay Single, Christian Vincent, François Cluzet, and José Garcia for Quatre Etoiles, and Catherine Breillat and Fu'ad Ait Aattou for Une vieille maîtresse. Journalists from Jornada and Proceso also interviewed Jean Labadie from Bac Films, the production company that co-produced the latest films by Carlos Reygadas.
Marina Hands was interviewed by the Sunday Herald (weekly) for the release of Lady Chatterley in the USA.
Danièle Thompson was interviewed by Folha de Sao Paulo (daily) for the release of Fauteuils d'orchestre (aka Orchestra Seats, Avenue Montaigne in Brazil.
Jean Becker was interviewed by Prague national radio and the official newspaper from the Karlovy Vary Film Festival for the film Conversations With My Gardener.