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Film is directed by Academy Award-nominated duo Alain Gagnol and Jean-Loup Felicioli and sold by Les Films du Losange.

Les Films du Losange has inked its first deals in key territories for animated feature Nina And The Hedgehog’s Secret following the film’s premiere on Monday night (June 12) in Annecy.

Directed by Academy Award-nominated duo Alain Gagnol and Jean-Loup Felicioli, whose credits inlcude A Cat in Paris and Phantom Boy, the film premiered in the Cannes market and will be released in France via Kmbo and in Benelux by Cineart.

Agora will release the film in Switzerland, Pack Magic in Spain,...

It’s Juliette’s fifth birthday, and she can wish for whatever she wants. Top of her list is an adventure, the likes of which this restless girl has only read about in books — specifically, a series of fantasy novels about a capricious wizard who controls the wind. In “Sirocco and the Kingdom of Air Streams,” a quiet afternoon takes an unpredictable, eye-popping turn, as Juliette (voiced by Loïse Charpentier) and her 8-year-old sister Carmen (Maryne Bertieaux) are whisked away to a dazzling surreal world of alligator-shaped airships and bird-headed opera divas, where seemingly anything can happen.

Welcome to the imagination of French director Benoît Chieux, who has crafted — in the year 2023, against considerable odds — a truly spectacular psychedelic excursion in the vein of head-trip classics “The Fantastic Planet” and “The Yellow Submarine.” It’s been roughly half a century since those two movies demonstrated just how liberating the medium of animation can be,...

Exclusive: Ron Dyens, the founding CEO of Paris-based company Sacrebleu Productions, has built a reputation as one of Europe’s most original and prolific producers of independent animated features over the course of nearly 25 years.

His company is out in force at the Annecy International Animation Film Festival this year.

Its new animated feature Sirocco And The Kingdom Of Air Streams opened the festival on Sunday evening (June 11) and is among 11 animated features in the running for its Cristal prize.

The company is also present in the short film competition with 1942-set Maurice’s Bar by Israeli filmmakers Tzor Edery & Tom Prezman about the memories of a former drag queen around one of Paris’s first queer bars.

Outside the film program, Sacrebleu will participate in the Works in Progress section with Gints Zilbalodis’ Flow. The Latvian director’s second feature after breakout debut Away, it revolves around a loner...

Lille-born filmmaker Benoît Chieux has been coming to Annecy for 30 years. This year, to his own amazement, he is opening the festival with “Sirocco and the Kingdom of Air Streams.”

“It’s an incredible surprise and a huge honor. Today’s competition [in animation] is very tough and there are so many high-quality feature films out there,” he says, calling the event “an exceptionally rich place to meet and discover new things.”

In “Sirocco,” two sisters, Juliette and Carmen, discover a secret passage to the world of their favorite book, the Kingdom of Air Streams. Transformed into cats and separated from each other, they will have to find their way back and – with the help of talented singer Selma – confront the mysterious Sirocco, the master of winds and storms.

“His face is half-hidden in order to draw the viewer’s attention. In a spectacular film like this one, it’s important to...

The film follows a 10-year-old girl who has always filled her imagination with her father’s entertaining stories about a hedgehog

Les films du Losange has unveiled the first English-language trailer for its star-powered animated tale Nina And The Hedgehog’s Secret ahead of the film’s Cannes market premiere and audience premiere at the Annecy Animation Festival in June.

The film, previously pitched as part of the Annecy Festival’s work-in-progress sessions, is the latest feature from writer-director duo Alain Gagnol and Jean-Loup Felicioli whose 2010 film A Cat In Paris was nominated in animation categories at the Oscars, Cesar...

Gkids has snapped up North American rights to Toei Animation’s film The First Slam Dunk, an adaptation of the hugely popular Takehiko Inoue manga, which Inoue wrote and directed for the screen. The film which has already proven a smash hit in other territories, grossing over $212M globally, will hit theaters in the U.S. and Canada in both its original Japanese language and an all-new English-language dub later this summer.

Marking Inoue’s directorial debut, The First Slam Dunk follows Shohoku High School’s “speedster” point guard, Ryota Miyagi, who always plays with brains and lightning speed, running circles around his opponents while feigning composure. Born and raised in Okinawa, Ryota had a brother who was three years older. And following in the footsteps of his older brother, who was a famous local player from a young age, Ryota also became addicted to basketball.

In his second year of high school,...

Gkids has snapped up North American rights to Keiichi Hara’s Lonely Castle in the Mirror, after serving as the distributor in the territory for his past animated features Summer Days with Coo and Miss Hokusai. The film based on the bestselling novel of the same name by Mizuki Tsujimura, featuring animation from A-1 Pictures, is slated for a theatrical release in both its original Japanese language and an all-new English dub this summer.

Reuniting Hara with collaborators including screenwriter Miho Maruo, composer Harumi Fuuki and artist Ilya Kuvshinov, Lonely Castle in the Mirror follows shy outcast Kokoro, who has been avoiding school for weeks when she discovers a portal in her bedroom mirror. She reaches through and finds herself transported to an enchanting castle where she is joined by six other students. And when a girl in a wolf mask explains that they have been invited to play a game,...

Gkids has snapped up U.S. rights to Ernest & Celestine: A Trip To Gibberitia — the sequel to the acclaimed Ernest & Celestine, which landed a Best Animated Feature Oscar nom in 2014. The decorated producer and distributor of animation, celebrating its 15th anniversary, will put both the original French-language version of Gibberitia and a new English dub in theaters this year.

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Both Ernest & Celestine films are based on the children’s book series by Belgian author-illustrator Gabrielle Vincent. The original helmed by Stéphane Aubier, Vincent Patar and Benjamin Renner examines the unlikely friendship between a bear, Ernest (Lambert Wilson...

Gkids has acquired North American rights to Unicorn Wars — the latest genre-bending animated feature from Goya and Annecy Cristal-winning director Alberto Vázquez (Birdboy: The Forgotten Children) — ahead of its U.S. premiere at Fantastic Fest. The horror-comedy will be released in theaters by Gkids in early 2023, following its domestic release in Spain this fall.

Billed as Bambi meets Apocalypse Now, Unicorn Wars‘ logline is as follows:

For ages, teddy bears have been locked in an ancestral war against their sworn enemy, the unicorns, with the promise that victory will complete the prophecy and usher in a new era. Aggressive, confident teddy bear Bluet and his sensitive, withdrawn brother Tubby could not be more different. As the rigors and humiliation of teddy bear bootcamp turn to the psychedelic horrors of a combat tour in the Magic Forest, their complicated history and increasingly strained relationship will come to determine the fate of the entire war.

Gkids has acquired North American rights to New Gods: Yang Jian, the latest feature from renowned Chinese animation studio Light Chaser Animation. The producer and distributor of award-winning animated features has slated Yang Jian for theatrical release in both its original Mandarin-language form and an all-new English language dub early next year. The deal marks the latest collaboration between Gkids and Light Chaser Animation, following the former’s local distribution of the 2019 feature White Snake.

Helmed by Ji Zhao, New Gods: Yang Jian is the second installment of the studio’s New Gods series of animated action-fantasy epics inspired by Chinese mythological figures, following the 2021 feature New Gods: Nezha Reborn, also directed by Zhao. It picks up 13 years after Yang Jian (known to some as Erlang Shen) imprisoned his sister beneath a mountain, with the once powerful god now scraping by as a penniless bounty hunter.

Chace Crawford (The Boys), Manny Jacinto (Nine Perfect Strangers), Hunter Schafer (Euphoria) and newcomer Kylie McNeill will lead the English-language voice cast for Mamoru Hosoda’s Gkids awards contender Belle, which is scheduled for release alongside the original Japanese-language version in U.S. theaters (including select Imax screens) on January 14, with exclusive Imax previews in select markets beginning January 12.

Others lending their voices to the new dub include Paul Castro Jr., David Chen, Jessica Dicicco, Brandon Engman, Martha Harms, Jessica Gee George, Barbara Goodson, Bentley Griffin, Andrew Kishino, Wendee Lee, Ben Lepley, Noelle McGrath, Julie Nathanson, Aaron Phillips, Ellyn Stern, Frank Todaro, Kiff VandenHeuvel, Cristina Vee Valenzuela, Tom Bromhead, John Bentley, Tiana Camacho, SungWon Cho, Courtney Chu, Larissa Gallagher, Heather Gonzalez, Xanthe Huynh, Anjali Kunapaneni, LilyPichu, Kyle McCarley, Julie Nathanson, Zeno Robinson, Stephanie Sheh, Michael Sinterniklaas, Rachel Slotky and Laura Stahl.

Hosoda’s’s...

Gkids has nabbed North American rights to Takayuki Hirao’s indie anime pic Pompo the Cinephile, and will release both the original Japanese-language film (titled Eiga Daisuki Pompo-san) and a new English-language version in U.S. theaters early next year.

Hirao’s ode to filmmaking centers on Pompo, a talented and gutsy producer in the world’s movie-making capital, “Nyallywood.” Although she’s known for B-movies, Pompo one day tells her assistant Gene that he will direct her next script: a delicate drama about an aging and tormented creative genius. But when the production heads towards chaos, can Gene rise to Pompo’s challenge, and succeed as a first-time director?

Pompo the Cinephile hails from the new animation studio, Clap. Its Japanese voice cast includes Hiroya Shimizu, Konomi Kohara, Ai Kakuma, Aiko Otsuka, and Rinka Ōtani. The film was an official selection of the 2021 Fantasia Film Festival and was released in Japan in June.

“Belle,” Hosoda Mamoru’s highly anticipated animated feature has been picked up by Gkids for release in North America.

The Studio Chizu-produced coming of age tale will release in Japan next month. Gkids says it will release ‘Belle” theatrically in both its original Japanese language and an English dubbed version this winter, and will qualify the film for 2021 awards consideration.

Nippon Television handles rights sales for the film in Asia. Paris-based sales company Charades is representing the film in other international markets.

The story follows a 17-year-old high school student living in a rural village with her father. For years, she has only been a shadow of herself. One day, she enters U, a virtual world of 5 billion members and where she has become Belle, a world-famous singer. She soon meets with a mysterious creature and embark on a journey of adventures, challenges and love, in their quest to become who they truly are.

The Criterion Channel has unveiled their lineup for next month and it’s another strong slate, featuring retrospectives of Carole Lombard, John Waters, Robert Downey Sr., Luis García Berlanga, Jane Russell, and Rob Epstein & Jeffrey Friedman. Also in the lineup is new additions to their Queersighted series, notably Todd Haynes’ early film Poison (Safe is also premiering in a separate presentation), William Friedkin’s Cruising, and Pier Paolo Pasolini’s Teorama.

The new restorations of Manoel de Oliveira’s stunning Francisca and Francesco Rosi’s Christ Stopped at Eboli will join the channel, alongside Agnieszka Holland’s Spoor, Bong Joon Ho’s early short film Incoherence, and Luc Dardenne & Jean-Pierre Dardenne’s Rosetta.

See the lineup below and explore more on criterionchannel.com.

#Blackmendream, Shikeith, 2014

12 Angry Men, Sidney Lumet, 1957

About Tap, George T. Nierenberg, 1985

The AIDS Show, Peter Adair and Rob Epstein, 1986

The Assignation, Curtis Harrington, 1953

Aya of Yop City,...

With Oscar voting officially underway, members of the Academy are hunkering down and catching up on all the films from this year of extended eligibility. Inarguably the hardest awards season to read in modern history, there are dozens of interpretations of how the season will shake out and where AMPAS voters’ minds are within the race.

I believe there’s an “X” factor to this awards season that could potentially affect what pundits perceive the nominations could look like. In addition, there’s also a disagreement on what this “X” factor could be. Some argue: just look at the guilds, that’s the only Oscar voter overlap. Others say Academy voters are disconnected from the season, and anything is possible. The truth is, it’s somewhere in the middle — but my theory is that international voters can be the tilt for various films and performances.

There are no parties, screening...

Delivery of the French-Luxembourgish project by Jean-Loup Felicioli and Alain Gagnol is slated for early 2023. After having worked together on A Cat in Paris and Phantom Boy, filmmakers Jean-Loup Felicioli and Alain Gagnol are continuing their exploration of a cinematic genre that is particularly dear to them: the crime film and, more specifically, the heist film. Tales of the Hedgehog, which has been selected for the upcoming Cartoon Movie (see the news), will follow ten-year-old Nina, whose life has been turned upside down ever since her father lost his job at a factory, after his supervisor embezzled money. Together with her friend Mehdi, the little girl sets off on a life-saving quest that may well lead to the discovery of a treasure hidden in the disused factory… It will therefore be a genre film, tailored for young audiences, which will revel in reusing the codes of Hollywoodian film noir...

On-Gaku: Our Sound, based on the acclaimed Manga, is going to get its big stateside release sometime in the back half of this year. The movie does not have a proper release date at this time, as most movie theaters have been shut down since mid-march. But with big chains like AMC, Cinemark and Regal getting ready to reopen in July, Gkids promises that On-Gaku: Our Sound will be in theaters sometime in 2020.

Gkids, the acclaimed producer and distributor of animation for adult and family audiences, announced that it has acquired the North American distribution rights for the animated feature&#160On-Gaku: Our Sound from director Kenji Iwaisawa, based on the manga by Hiroyuki Ohashi.

In production for over seven years, On-Gaku: Our Sound is composed of over 40,000 hand drawn frames, using the rotoscoping animation technique. The film won the Nelvana Grand Prize at the 2019 Ottawa International Animation Festival, and has...

France’s 2020 Annecy festival and accompanying Mifa market won’t be the first such events to go completely online this year, but certainly stand out as one of Europe’s largest to do so. The prestigious animation gathering, which normally draws toon heavyhitters from all over the world, will stream June 15-30.

While platforms and broadcasters fight over available content, with kids and family one of the tentpoles of subscriber retention, the market for animation has never been more demanding — both in quality and audience expectation.

One big challenge in making the transition to online is the inability to stream many of the key titles from Annecy’s Official and Contrechamp competitions in their entirety due to licensing rights and other contractual conditions.

However, several studios and key sales agents have confirmed to Variety that they are planning alternative means of promoting their upcoming content while still entertaining eager Annecy badge-holders.

Grégoire Melin’s Paris-based Kinology will sell Sacrebleu’s upcoming animated feature “Sirocco and the Kingdom of the Winds,” set to host Was an Annecy Works in Progress panel at the upcoming digital version of the world’s largest animation festival and market.

At March’s Cartoon Movie in the French port city of Bordeaux, the films singular visuals and family-friendly story caught the eye of many in attendance, and makes it one of the most anticipated productions set to participate at this year’s Annecy.

Kinology has a strong reputation in dealing with independent arthouse animated features, including the critically acclaimed 2014 Annecy main competition player “Mune: Guardian of the Moon.”

“We’re thrilled to partner with Ron and Benoit on such a unique, poetic and emotional journey; it has everything to become a true future kids’ classic in the line of ‘The King and the Mockingbird’ and ‘Kirikou,’” Kinology CEO Grégoire Melin told Variety.

Netflix, China’s Alibaba and France have thrown their weight behind the Annecy Animation Festival, with the festival set to showcase an in progress reveal of the U.S. streaming giant’s “The Cupcake Show!” plus a look back at cult movie “Animal Crackers,” as well as six French productions in its Work in Progress section, Annecy’s single most important program strand.

Distributed by Alibaba Pictures Group, “New Gods: Nezha Reborn,” from Ji Zhao, follows on the highest grossing animated movie ever in a single territory, earning over $700 million in China.

French productions are led by the hugely awaited “The Summit of the Gods,” produced by Jean-Charles Ostorero and the most ambitious movie to date from Didier and Damien Brunner.

Also in the French Wip mix is “The Island,” the latest from Romania’s Anca Damian, who won Annecy’s top pirize with “Crilic: The Path to Beyond,” as...

Remi Chayé’s “Calamity, a Childhood of Martha Jane Cannary,” Benoît Chieux’ “Sirocco and the Kingdom of the Winds” and “They Shot the Piano Player,” from Fernando Trueba and Javier Mariscal, were among projects which caught attention at this week’s 22nd Cartoon Movie, which ran March 3-5 in the French port city of Bordeaux.

The presentation of “Calamity.” the awaited second feature by Chayé (“Long Way North”), registered the highest attendance of any pitch at the animation co-production and sales forum. Produced by France’s Maybe Movies and Denmark’s Nørlum and sold by Paris-based Indie Sales, “Calamity” tells the story of Martha Jane Cannary, a 12-year-old girl caring for her siblings in a wagon train heading West to Wyoming. A coming-of-age feature, it is also an origins story of the young woman would become the legendary Calamity Jane.

A buzz title in Bordeaux, sold by Film Constellation and...

Charades, the Paris-based sales company behind the Oscar-nominated “I Lost My Body” and “Mirai,” has closed a raft of deals on high-profile animated features, including “Little Nicholas” and “Marona’s Fantastic Tale.”

Anca Damian’s “Marona’s Fantastic Tale,” which world premiered in competition at last year’s Annecy Film Festival and was nominated at the European Film Awards, portrays a dog who, reflecting back on her life, reminisces about her different homes and owners after being hit by a car.

Set for a North American release later this year with Gkids, “Marona’s Fantastic Tale” has been acquired by Japan (Riskit), Spain (Pack Magic), the Baltics (Scanorama), Taiwan (Sky Digi), China (Legend Film), Poland (New Horizons), South Korea (Challan), Sweden (Triart) and Netherlands (Windmill). Damian’s followup to “Crulic: The Path to Beyond,” “Marona’s Fantastic Tale” is made with a range of styles, from expressionistic sketches to crayon drawings.

Denmark’s Jonas Alexander Arnby, France’s Alain Gagnol and Jean-Loup Felicioli, and Poland’s Agnieszka Smoczyńska are among up-and-coming directors from across Europe whose latest projects will be presented at the 11th Coproduction Village of Les Arcs Film Festival.

This edition of Les Arcs Coproduction Village will showcase a total of 22 European projects spanning 19 countries. The forum is meant to help filmmakers and producers find sales agents, distributors, as well as co-production and financial partners.

A rising polish director, Smoczyńska, will present her English-language debut, “Silent Twins” about sibling who have spent 14 years in a high-security psychiatric hospital and have developed a unique way of communicating. The film will be produced by Madants. Smoczyńska previously directed a short in the omnibus horror film, “The Field Guide To Evil,” and the film “Fugue” which world premiered at Cannes Critics’ Week.

Gagnol and Felicioli, the directors pair behind the Oscar-nominated animated...

Tale of troubled student who flees to Tokyo to receive awards-qualifying run.

Gkids has unveiled its latest Japanese anime acquisition, concluding a deal in Cannes for North American rights to Makoto Shinkai’s follow-up to his box office smash Your Name., Weathering With You.

The distributor has set an awards-qualifying run in 2019 ahead of the theatrical release proper in early 2020 in both the original Japanese and a new English-language version.

Weathering With You follows a troubled high school student who runs away to Tokyo where he finds work on a remote island and eventually meets a girl who changes his outlook on life.

After having been successfully adapted into a pair of live-action movies, “Le Petit Nicolas,” based on the popular series of French children’s books from the ’60s, will be back on the big screen in an hand-drawn animated feature directed by Gilles de Maistre (“Mia and the White Lion”) and Amandine Fredon.

“Le Petit Nicolas, une enfance rêvée” is being produced by French animation powerhouse On Entertainment (“The Little Prince”), in co-production with Foliascope (“The Tower”), Luxembourg outfit Bidibul Productions (“A Cat in Paris”) and Canada’s Kaibou. Charades, the banner behind the Oscar-nominated “Mirai,” is handling international sales and will introduce the project (currently in pre-production) to buyers at Cannes.

“Little Nicholas” marks the first 2D animated feature undertaken by Aton Soumache at On Entertainment, whose credits include the Cannes-premiering, BAFTA-nominated “The Little Prince” and the upcoming “Playmobil: The Movie.” Foliascope is the company launched by animation veteran Pascal Le Notre,...

Claude Barras’ “Savages!,” Alain Gagnol and Jean-Loup Felicioli’s “Tales of the Hedgehog” and Peter Dodd’s “King of the Swamp” are among the sixty-six projects –a 10% increase from last year– to be pitched at the 21st Cartoon Movie, Europe’s leading animated movie co-production event, which will take place in the French port city of Bordeaux, kicking off March 5.

Projects will be offered to buyers and potential partners in different stages: 28 in concept, 24 in development, seven in production and seven sneak previews.

“Savages!” is the much-awaited sophomore project from Switzerland’s Barras, following his multi-awarded and foreign-language Oscar nominated “My Life as a Zucchini.” A stop-motion feature, “Savages!” is produced by France’s Prélude in co-production with Switzerland’s Helium Films. It tells the story of the friendship between 11-year-old Kéria and a Bornean orangutan baby. They will be forced to flee from Kéria’s father who wants to...

Heads up on what's newly available to you this week. Links go to previous coverage / reviews here at Tfe.

DVD/Blu-Ray

• Bel Canto -Julianne Moore as an opera singer. It was barely released

• BlacKkKlansman - Spike Lee's best in ages. We think it might be competitive for Picture, Director, Adapted Screenplay, and Editing nominations. Do you?

• Christopher Robin - Ewan McGregor stars as the boy all grown up revisited by Pooh, Tigger, and the Hundred Acre Woods gang.

• Incredibles 2 - The year's fourth biggest hit globally with 1.2 billion in the bank

• Loving Pablo - Penelope Cruz & Javier Bardem star in this drama about a journalist and a drug lord.

• Papillon - Rami Malek and Charlie Hunnam remake the Dustin Hoffman and Steve McQueen prison drama

• Scotty and the Secret History of Hollywood - a salacious documentary about a man who allegedly secured same-sex sex for the movie stars of Old Hollywood.

Barcelona— Finland’s Yle, Ireland’s 9 Story Distribution International and France’s Folimage have been awarded as Broadcaster, Investor/Distributor and Producer of the Year respectively at this year’s Cartoon Forum, which closes today in Toulouse.

Finnish public broadcaster Yle, through Yle TV2, airs over 3,000 hours of programming per year for 2-12s. Yle has become a proactive partner in animated TV series co-production, and alongside the recently approved 25% cash rebate for domestic and foreign investments is one of the keys to Finland’s new animation revival. Two recent productions in which Yle has participated are “Gigglebug” (Gigglebug Entertainment) and “Albi the Snowman” (Hima Light). The Nordic country was also honored at Cartoon Forum with a Spotlight.

Other nominées in this category were Italy’s DeAKids, Netflix and France’s TF1 Unite Jeunesse.

Founded in 1981 by Jacques-Rémy Girerd, France’s Folimage took the Cartoon Tribute Award for Best Producer of the Year.

Annecy, France — We’re not saying these are the best shorts at Annecy this year. Nor the forerunners for prizes. Chosen principally from the shorts in the short film competition, and buzzed up titles hitting Annecy, they are, however, undeniable proof of the huge creativity of contemporary Annecy. If Annecy is about discovery, much is to be found in these sections.

‘Bloeistraat 11’

2D, from Belgium Lumière’s Lunanime, co-producers of “Phantom Boy” and 2018 competition contender “Funan.” But this is 2D with an edge, and psychological observance as two Bbf’s girls sorority is prized apart by the onset of puberty, with one taking up with the other’s brother. Could a man have directed this? Probably yes, but almost certainly not so knowingly.

‘The Cat’S Regret’

Hitchcock in exquisite 2D, from the directors and animation studio behind 2012 Oscar-nominated feature “A Cat in Paris,” Jean-Loup Felicioli and Alain Gagnol and France’s Folimage,...

Admitting to limited interest in the Academy Awards, per se, I am, however, very interested in Best Foreign Language Film, Best Documentary and Best Animated Feature this year because I Love Chico & Rita (Isa:  HanWay) by Fernando Trueba (Belle Epoque and Calle 54) and can't wait to see A Cat in Paris (Isa: Films Distribution) by Alain Gagnol and Jean-Loup Ferlicioli.  Both of these are being distributed by GKids a multi-platform distributor of prestige entertainment for children and teens, specializing in titles that cross over between art house and youth audiences and also runs N.Y. Children's International Film Festival, though Chico & Rita is not a kid or...

A Cat in Paris Trailer, Une Vie De Chat Trailer. Jean-Loup Felicioli, Alain Gagnol‘s A Cat in Paris / Une Vie De Chat (2010) movie trailer stars Dominique Blanc, Bruno Salomone, Jean Benguigui, Bernadette Lafont, and Oriane Zani. A Cat in Paris‘ plot synopsis: “y day a child’s beloved companion… by night, a rooftop-roaming thief! Presenting Alain Gagnol and Jean-Loup Felicioli’s captivating new film, from France’s most acclaimed animation studio, Folimage. Our tale’s hero is Dino, a common house cat who lives a double life.

He’s the loyal pet of Zoe, a lonely little girl who lives with her busy single mother Jeanne, a police officer. But after sundown, he clambers over the rooftops of Paris in the company of Nico, a skilled thief with a big heart. Eventually, Zoe discovers what Dino is up to and becomes drawn into a thrilling, adventure involving jewels, gangsters and capital-t trouble.

The live stream of the European Film Awards from Berlin this evening was pretty spotty, but a few fine moments came through, particularly the moment when a special honorary award was inaugurated and presented to a very surprised Michel Piccoli by Volker Schlöndorff and Bruno Ganz.

Another special award was given to producer Mariela Besuievski, Stellan Skarsgård presented the European Achievement in World Cinema Award to Mads Mikkelsen, and Stephen Frears received this year's Lifetime Achievement Award.

The full list of winners and nominees:

European Film 2011: Melancholia, Denmark/Sweden/France/Germany

Written and Directed by Lars von Trier

Produced by Meta Louise Foldager and Louise Vesth.

Also nominated:

The Artist, France

Written and Directed by Michel Hazanavicius

Produced by Thomas Langmann and Emmanuel Montamat

Le Gamin au Velo (The Kid with a Bike), Belgium/France/Italy

Written and Directed by Jean-Pierre and Luc Dardenne

Produced by Jean-Pierre and Luc Dardenne,...

With a half dozen titles in the sidebars, the Parisian Sales Agent Film Distribution folks are certainly going to be hosting several parties. At the top of the list they've got Bertrand Bonello's House of Tolerance. In the waiting, we find the co. pushing Brillante Mendoza's latest entitled Captured - a film that features a Croisette fixture in the popular Isabelle Huppert (see pic above). Here's a ton of stuff in Film Distribution's pipeline: House Of Tolerance (L'apollonide) by Bertrand Bonello - Completed The Slut by Hagar Ben Asher - Completed The Snows Of Kilimanjaro (Les Neiges Du Kilimanjaro) by Robert GUÉDIGUIAN - Completed 17 Girls (17 Filles) by Delphine Coulin - Completed A Burning Desire by Bernard Jeanjean - Completed A Cat In Paris (English Version) (Une Vie De Chat) by Alain Gagnol - Completed Breathing (Atmen) by Karl Markovics - Completed Duch, Master Of The Forges Of Hell...

Xavier Beauvois' "Of Gods and Men" dominated the nominations of the 36th Annual Cesar Awards, the French equivalent of the Oscars. "Of Gods" received 11 nominations total and will compete against Heartbreaker (L'Arnacoeur), Gainsbourg (Vie Heroique), Mammuth, Le Nom Des Gens, The Ghost Writer, and On Tour for Best Film.

The Social Network, Invictus, Inception, Illegal, The Secret In Their Eyes, Bright Star, and Les Amours Imaginaires will duke it out for the Best Foreign Film category.

Jodie Foster will preside over the ceremony and Quentin Tarantino will be given an honorary Cesar award. The 36th Annual Cesar Awards will be held on Feb. 25th.

Here is the full list of nominees:

Best Film

Heartbreaker (L'Arnacoeur), dir: Pascal Chaumeil

Of Gods and Men (Des Hommes Et Des Dieu), dir: Xavier Beauvois

Gainsbourg (Vie Heroique), dir: Joann Sfar

Mammuth, dir: Benoit Delepine, Gustave Kervern

Le Nom Des Gens, dir: Michel Leclerc

The Ghost Writer,...

Quite simply one of the most charming piece of animation I've seen all year, the first trailer has arrived for Alain Gagnol and Jean-Loup Feliciolli's A Cat In Paris (Une Vie De Chat). The look is unique in the current animation world, seemingly hand drawn with pencil crayons and highly stylized. The story is a unique spin on everyday life, all of it built around a common house cat leading a double life. Here's the official synopsis:

Dino is a cat that leads a double life. By day, he lives with Zoe, a little girl whose mother, Jeanne, is a police officer. By night, he works with Nico, a burglar with a big heart.One day, Dino the cat brings Zoe a very valuable bracelet. Lucas, Jeanne's second-in-command, notices this bracelet is part of a jewellery collection that has been stolen.One night, Zoe decides to follow Dino. On the way,...

With three in the Director's Fortnight and one in the Main Comp for good measure, Films Distribution are making a significant contribution to Cannes this year – my money is on Katell Quillevere's Un Poison Violent (see pic above) but Wang Xiaoshuai, Jean-Stéphane Bron's doc on white collar crimes that hinder the working man and an immigrant tale gone wrong portrait from Olivier Masset-Depasse could make this a great year for the distributor. Something to look forward to in the near future: Yann Samuell's next effort. Chongqing Blues (Rizhao Chongqing) by Wang Xiaoshuai - Completed Cleveland Vs Wall Street by Jean-Stéphane Bron - Completed Illegal by Olivier Masset-depasse - Completed L'amour Fou by Pierre Thoretton - Completed With Love... From The Age Of Reason (L'ÂGE De Raison) by Yann Samuell - Completed A Cat In Paris (Une Vie De Chat) by Alain Gagnol - Production Family Tree (L'arbre Et La FORÊT...