From April 21 through May 1, 8 French feature films and 2 short films were showcased at this year’s Tribeca Film Festival in New York.
Point Blank by Fred Cavayé, L'amour fou by Pierre Thoretton, The Assault by Julien Leclercq, The Ballad of Genesis and Lady Jaye by Marie Losier, Flowers of Evil by David Dusa, Hideaways by Agnès Merlet, and Ma part du gâteau by Cédric Klapisch were selected in the various festival sections including the Spotlight, Viewpoints, and Documentary sections. Romantics Anonymous by Jean-Pierre Améris was the only feature film in competition, with two short films, Après le feu by Jacques Perconte and Le Philosophe by Abdulla Alkaabi, also in competition.
The event was highly positive for French films in terms of attendance and media coverage. Over the eleven-day festival, the eight French films selected attracted over 8,000 paying spectators (as well as 2,000 professionals and guests), spread across the four main theaters hosting the film festival: the Clearview Chelsea Cinema, AMC Loews Village, SVA Theater, and Tribeca Cinema. Films received wide media attention, particularly on the Internet. David Dusa’s Flowers of Evil was screened online on the Tribeca Internet platform, marking the first time that a French film has been presented online as well as in theaters at this event.
Romantics Anonymous was elected by audiences as one of the festival's 10 Best Films. This was the result of a public vote organized by the festival, with viewers invited to rate films from all festival sections from 1 ("bad") to 5 ("excellent"), with their votes lodged in ballot boxes placed at theater exits.
The French delegation at the festival included Julien Leclercq, Vincent Elbaz, Marie Losier, Agnès Merlet, Pierre Thoretton, Cédric Klapisch, and Jean-Pierre Améris. Pierre Thoretton is the only director to date to have secured upcoming release for his film L’amour fou, which is slated for release in the USA on May by IFC Films, and to have taken part in a large number of media interviews. A Special Evening dedicated to this film was held at a MoMa in the presence of members of the fashion world, including media representatives, designers such as Vera Wang and Olivier Theyskens, and prestigious guests such as Sofia Coppola, Kyle MacLachlan, Kelly Rutherford, and Tom Hooper (director of The King’s Speech).
The Tribeca Film Festival ranks as a Class A festival in the United States, even though it does not offer a film market. American media representatives and industry professionals from around the world attend this event to discover films of all nationalities. Screenings are held in commercial theaters packed with movie enthusiasts keen to discuss films following screenings, with French directors invariably delighted to attract such strong interest from New York audiences.
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