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Women directed just 24.2% of French films in 2024, down from 25% in 2023, according to the Cnc’s Gender Equality report published this month.

The report comes after no women were nominated in the best film or best director categories at this year’s Cesar awards. Louise Courvoisier did take home the best debut feature prize for Holy Cow, in a category where Agathe Riedinger was also nominated for Wild Diamond.

According to the Cnc report, women directors made films with budgets 39% lower than those of their male counterparts in 2024, compared to 25% the year before. The budget for films strictly directed by women...

“Emilia Pérez” won Best Film from the French 2025 César Awards, a major win for the Netflix film ahead of the Oscars. Jacques Audiard’s movie had earned 13 Oscar nominations but then fell out of frontrunner status.

The film also won both Best Director and Best Adapted Screenplay for Jacques Audiard, though Zoe Saldaña, who has dominated the awards circuit all year, lost in an upset to Hafsia Herzi for the film “Borgo.” Saldaña though was nominated alongside Karla Sofía Gascón in the Best Actress category, and not in Best Supporting Actress.

In all, “Emilia Pérez” took home seven Césars out of 12 nominations, including Best Visual Effects, Best Sound, Best Original Music, and Best Cinematography. “The Count of Monte Cristo,” a new version of the Dumas revenge tale, led all nominees with 14, and it won two.

While the Césars this year largely did not resemble the Oscars, a few others won...

Jacques Audiard’s Oscar contender Emilia Pérez was the big winner at the 50th César Awards, France’s equivalent of the Oscars, taking best film and best director among multiple honors.

Audiard won best director and best adapted screenplay for Emilia Pérez, and the film also took honors for best sound, best cinematography, best visual effects and best original music.

But Emilia Pérez star Karla Sofía Gascón, who walked the red carpet at the Paris gala, returning to the spotlight for the first time since the eruption of the controversy surrounding her offensive resurfaced tweets, lost out in the best actress race to Hafsia Herzi, who won for her role as a female prison guard in Stéphane Demoustier’s drama Borgo.

Gascón, who is Spanish, skipped Spain’s national film awards, the Goyas, earlier this month following the backlash over her past social media posts. Netflix removed the actress, the...

France’s César Awards mark their 50th ceremony at the Olympia Theatre in Paris this evening with swashbuckler The Count of Monte Cristo, star-crossed romance Beating Hearts and Mexico-set, Spanish language musical Oscar hopeful Emilia Pérez leading the nominations.

Other multi-nominated titles include asylum seeker drama Souleymane’s Story, thriller Misericordia and The Marching Band, a feel-good movie set in a declining manufacturing town in northern France.

Voted on by the just under 5,000 members of the Academy of Cinema Arts and Techniques, or César Academy, France’s equivalent of the Oscars or Baftas celebrate French productions released in the country between January 1 to December 31 of a given year.

“We’re particularly happy this year because there’s a rich variety in the nominations. There’s everything from popular mainstream cinema to more difficult, demanding films, which have found success in festivals, which is also a reflection of the DNA and diversity of French cinema,...

J'adore le cinéma! If you love it too, especially in a Francophilic way, you'll be happy to know that Unifrance and Film at Lincoln Center are gearing up for the 30th edition of Rendez-Vous with French Cinema, running from March 6 to March 16. As usual, this year's film series combines a variety of anticipated films from great French directors with fresh young filmmakers, some selected as part of Unifrance’s 10 to Watch 2025 Program, a yearly initiative honoring a new generation of directors and actors who contribute to the vitality of French creation. There will be 23 films this year, a variety of North American, U.S., and New York premieres which "celebrate the energy, innovation, and range of French cinema," according to Film at Lincoln Center (Flc).

“Unifrance is honored to be celebrating 30 years of French cinema with our partner, Film at Lincoln Center,” said Daniela Elstner, executive director of Unifrance. “Rendez-Vous...

The 30th annual Rendez-Vous with French Cinema festival, hosted by Film at Lincoln Center and Unifrance, is celebrating the work of acclaimed actor Vincent Lindon.

While the 2025 festival is not entirely honoring Lindon himself, the actor appears in a whopping trio of featured films and also will be onsite for Q&As and introductions. Lindon stars in Quentin Dupieux’s meta-comedy “The Second Act,” which opened the 77th Cannes Film Festival, as well as Gilles Bourdos’ dramatic thriller “Cross Away” and Delphine Coulin and Muriel Coulin’s “The Quiet Son” (Lindon won Best Actor at the 81st Venice Film Festival for that drama).

And Lindon isn’t the only beloved French star to join this year’s Rendez-Vous with French Cinema: Actors Isabelle Huppert and Édgar Ramírez, plus auteurs Olivier Assayas and Bertrand Bonello are among those who will have features screening. Bonello, while known as a director, lent his composing skills to “Planet B.

The Count of Monte Cristo, Matthieu Delaporte and Alexandre de La Patellière’s retelling of the classic French revenge tale, is the front-runner for this year’s César Awards, scoring 14 nominations, including in the best film and best directing categories.

The period drama, starring Pierre Niney, beat out Jacques Audiard’s Oscar frontrunner Emilia Pérez, which got 12 noms, and Beating Hearts, Gilles Lellouche’s contemporary reimagining of Romeo and Juliet featuring François Civil and Adèle Exarchopoulos, which earned 13 nominations.

Matthieu Delaporte and Alexandre de la Patelliere’s lavish adaptation of Alexandre Dumas’ classic was the biggest French box office hit of last year, drawing close to 10 million viewers for a $40 million local take. Globally, the film has grossed more than $75 million.

Sean Baker’s Palme d’Or winner, and Oscar contender, Anora, is up for the Cesar for best foreign film, against Academy Award hopefuls including Coralie Fargeat’s The Substance,...

“The Count of Monte Cristo,” a three-hour epic adventure adapted from Alexandre Dumas’s literary classic, is leading the race at the Cesar Awards, France’s equivalent to the Oscars, with a whooping 14 nominations. “Beating Hearts,” Gilles Lellouche’s sprawling crime romance, follows shortly with 13 nominations.

A favorite in the Oscar race, Jacques Audiard’s “Emilia Perez” is nominated for 12 Cesar Awards, including best film and actress for Karla Sofía Gascón and Zoe Saldana. The French awards show has highlighted international performers before, notably Kristen Stewart, who won a Cesar nod in 2015 for her supporting role in Olivier Assayas’ “Cloud of Sils Maria.”

It’s worth noting that the two Cesar frontrunners — “The Count of Monte Cristo” and “Beating Hearts” — were also France’s second and third highest grossing local films in 2024. Both movies are produced by Mediawan-owned banners, Chapter 2 and Chi-Fou-Mi (the latter produced “Beating Hearts...

Jacques Audiard’s musical film Emilia Pérez swept the 30th edition of France’s Lumière Awards on Monday evening, winning Best Film, Director and Screenplay as well Actress for Karla Sofia Gascón and Music for Camille and Clément Ducol.

The wins add further steam to the Cannes Jury Prize winner’s awards season run following its quadruple Golden Globes triumph and European Film Awards victory, where it also clinched Best Film, Director, Screenplay and Actress for Gascón.

The movie is currently on six of the 10 announced category shortlists for the 97th the Academy Awards and nominated in 11 categories for the 2025 Baftas film awards.

Further awards seasons hopefuls also featured in the Lumière prizes, with Mati Diop’s Berlinale Golden Bear winner Dahomey – which made it into Best International Feature Film (for Senegal) and Documentary Academy Award shortlists – won Best Documentary.

Latvian director Gints Zilbalodis’s Flow – which is also on...

2024 falls into the category of “If Carlsberg did years…” (other beer brands are available). The year started in a Dublin sound mixing suite, desperately trying to get my film Kneecap finished in time for its world premiere at Sundance. It didn’t quite get to sprinting up Main Street, Park City, grasping a Dcp, but it wasn’t far off… I think the first hint that we were on the cusp of something beyond our expectations was when I arrived at Salt Lake City airport with the subjects of the film, the band Kneecap, and autograph hunters were waiting with pictures to get signed. Of them, not me. Fuming.

The premiere seemed to go really well, or did I just imagine that? Then within minutes of the credits rolling the reviews started dropping. I hadn’t imagined it. Oh shit, we got ourselves a movie… Kneecap were performing on stage...

It has been a banner year for Martin Delemazure, the managing director of Paris-based composer agency Grande Ourse.

He had seven films at the Cannes Film Festival in May featuring music by composers on the agency’s books, topped by Jury Prize-winner Emilia Pérez, which also won Best Cannes Soundtrack for Grande Ourse talent Camille, who takes a co-music credit with life and work partner Clément Ducol.

The other titles spanned Palme d’Or contender Wild Diamond, for which the soundtrack was composed by Audrey Ismaël, who also wrote the music for Un Certain Regard title The Kingdom.

Grande Ourse also represents David Sztanke, who wrote the music for a second film in the sidebar, Dog on Trial. Elsewhere in the Official Selection, client Matteo Locasciulli wrote the soundtrack for bio-doc Jacques Demy, the Pink and the Black in Cannes Classics.

In the parallel Cannes Critics’ Week section, Rebeka Warrior...

Jacques Audiard’s musical film Emilia Pérez is the frontrunner at the nomination stage for the 30th edition of France’s Lumière awards.

The prizes, which are regarded as the French equivalent of the Golden Globes, will be voted on by members of the international press hailing from 38 countries this year.

They cover 13 categories spanning film, direction, screenplay, actress, actor, female revelation, male revelation, first film, animation, documentary, international co-production, cinematography and music.

Audiard’s Cannes Jury Prize winner Emilia Pérez has clinched six nominations, followed by Boris Lojkine’s Souleymane’s Story, which won the Un Certain Regard Jury Prize this year, and Alain Guiraudie’s Misericordia, with five nominations each.

Other frontrunners with four nominations each, include François Ozon’s When Fall Is Coming and Jonathan Millet’s Ghost Trail.

The winners will be announced in a ceremony at the Forum des images in Paris on January 20, 2025.

The full...

Jacques Audiard’s Emilia Perez has topped the nominations for France’s Lumière Awards.

The French-made, Spanish-language film earned six nominations for best film, director, screenplay, cinematography, music and actress for Karla Sofía Gascón in her starring role as the titular transitioning Mexican drug lord.

The Lumière nominations cap a strong week for Emilia Perez, which garnered 10 nominations for the 2025 Golden Globes,and was the big winner at the European Film Awards with five prizes.

Scroll down for full list of nominees

Boris Lojkine’s Souleymane’s Story, which tracks the daily life of an undocumented Guinean asylum seeker in Paris,...

The 45th edition of the Cairo Film Festival concluded with the top prize, the Golden Pyramid Award, going to Bogdan Mureșanu’s “The New Year That Never Came.” The black comedy, which previously won the Horizons sidebar at the Venice Film Festival, is set in 1989 during the festive season that immediately precedes the downfall of the Romanian dictator Nicolae Ceauşescu.

The Special Jury Award for best director, the Silver Pyramid, went to Russian director Natalia Nazarova for “Postmarks,” which also picked up a best actor award for Maxim Stoyanov and a special mention for the female lead, Alina Khojevanova. The other male lead award went to Lee Kang-Sheng for his performance in “Blue Sun Palace.”

The International Jury led by Danis Tanović (“No Man’s Land”) also awarded the Bronze Pyramid for best debut or second feature award to Pedro Freire’s “Malu.” The Rio-set film was inspired by his...

Hope is one of the main pillars of Hollywood storytelling. Whats a story without hope? Hope that the protagonist will win, the final girl will take down the masked killer, and that rags will become riches. Thats what separates Agathe Riedingers feature debut, Wild Diamond, from most Hollywood movies. It, too, surrounds a person as they set out to achieve their dream, but hope isnt the driving force or lifeline here Riedinger frames it as the villain. What first seems like a basic coming-of-age story becomes a tale not of perseverance, but self-destruction in the name of glory.

It is fitting that for the 30th year of the Geneva International Film Festival, artistic director Anais Emery and her team are going back to the future.

“It was very important to recall the history of the festival but not through a retrospective,” says Emery of the event that takes place in the Swiss city from November 1-10.

”We wanted to renew, to celebrate and underline Giff’s speciality and specificity.”

That means showcasing innovative storytelling delivered via the myriad audiovisual mediums available to creators, from film, TV and web content to installations, virtual reality and extended reality (Xr) works.

The American French Film Festival has long been considered the premiere U.S. event for launching French film and television content to American audiences and while last year’s edition was forced to cancel due to Hollywood’s dual strikes, this year the L.A.-based event is back and gearing up for what it expects to be one of its best editions yet.

The six-day festival, which kicks off its 28th edition on October 29 at the DGA Theater Complex, is bookended by two of the year’s buzziest French titles with Jacques Audiard’s Spanish-language musical-crime film Emilia Pérez set for opening night while Pathé’s French box office hit The Count of Monte Cristo set to close the event on November 3.

Both films, say festival organizers, are reflective of the kinds of projects that Tafff wants to unveil to Hollywood audiences: Audiard’s Cannes-winning title Emilia Pérez is...

Mumbai Film Festival has announced the 11 titles selected for its South Asia competition, the main competitive section of the festival, which includes the UK’s Oscars submission, Sandhya Suri’s Santosh, making its South Asian premiere.

The line-up also includes Nepal’s Oscars submission, Min Bahadur Bham’s Shambhala, along with one other Nepali title – Deepak Rauniyar’s Pooja, Sir – and Bhutanese title Agent Of Happiness, directed by Arun Bhattarai and Dorottya Zurbo.

Indian titles in the competition include Rima Das’ Village Rockstars 2, which recently won a Jiseok award at Busan International Film Festival; multiple award-winner Girls Will Be Girls, by Shuchi Talati; Raam Reddy’s The Fable and Midhun Murali’s Kiss Wagon (see full line-up below).

The non competitive Focus South Asia section is screening ten features and 13 shorts, including a title from Afghanistan – Roya Sadat’s The Sharp Edge Of Peace – and a short film from Myanmar,...

The American French Film Festival returns for its 28th annual event at the DGA Theater Complex from Oct. 29 to Nov. 3. The festival will showcase 60 films and series, including 14 shorts and 14 series or TV movies. It will open with France’s official selection for Oscar consideration, “Emilia Pérez,” and close with the new rendition of the classic Alexandre Dumas novel “The Count of Monte Cristo” by Matthieu Delaporte and Alexandre de La Petelliére.

This marks the first time 16 of these features will be presented to an audience in Hollywood after premiering at the latest editions of the Berlin, Cannes, and Venice International Film Festivals. Additionally, 59 of the selected works will be up for the Tafff Awards.

The selection of films includes the comedy “A Nice Jewish Boy” by director Noé Debré, written by Michael Zindel, Agnès Jaoui, and Solar Bouloudnine; the political thriller “Death of a Corrupt Man,” directed by Georges Lautner and written by Lautner,...

The American French Film Festival unveiled the full-line up of its upcoming edition at a press conference at the Résidence de France in Beverly Hills on Wednesday, as the event returns after a one-year hiatus due to the Hollywood strikes.

The 28th edition, running October 29 to November 3 in the Director’s Guild of America Theatre Complex, will showcase 60 films and series, with 14 shorts, 14 Series and TV movies, and 32 feature films and documentaries, many of which are International, North American and U.S. premiere presentations.

As previously announced the event will be book-ended by Jacques Audiard’s Emilia Pérez as the opening film and The Count of Monte Cristo, which will close the event.

The American French Film Festival was created and is produced by the Franco-American Cultural Fund, a collaboration between the Directors Guild of America (DGA), the Motion Picture Association (MPA), France’s Society of Authors, Composers and Publishers...

Arthouse distributor Strand Releasing has taken North American rights for Norwegian filmmaker Dag Johan Haugerud’s “Love,” which makes its world premiere on Sept. 6 in the main competition of the Venice Film Festival. M-Appeal is handling world sales for the film.

“Love” is the latest entry in Haugerud’s “Sex,” “Love” and “Dreams” trilogy, which delves into modern relationships and intimacy. “Sex,” the first instalment, premiered at the Berlinale.

Strand, which celebrates its 35th anniversary this year, previously acquired “Sex,” and will release both films theatrically in spring 2025.

Jon Gerrans, co-president of Strand, said: “Haugerud has crafted a wonderfully intelligent, provocative and unique approach to personal, adult relationships, with a sly wink toward our own attitudes toward sex, love and desire.”

“Love” tells the story of Marianne, a pragmatic doctor, and Tor, a compassionate nurse, who both avoid conventional relationships. One evening, after a blind date, Marianne encounters Tor on the ferry.

The Larrieu brothers’ Cannes melodrama Jim’s Story has sold to multiple territories as it enjoys a strong opening in its first week in French cinemas for Pyramide Distribution.

Pyramide International has sold the film to Filmin in Spain, Jmh in Switzerland, K-Films in Quebec, Panda in Austria, Paradiso in Benelux, Beta Film in Bulgaria, Falcon in Indonesia, and Nachson in Israel.

After debuting as a Cannes Premiere, Jim’s Story was released on August 14 and has sold 143,016 tickets (approximately €1.1m) in its first week in theatres, a strong opening for an arthouse title particularly during an August holiday week in the country.

Mexico’s Monterrey International Film Festival marks a milestone 20th edition with inaugural industry programs, a robust lineup and new team members as it seeks to further boost its international profile. The event will be held from Sept. 25 to Oct. 2 in Parque Fundidora, Monterrey, with two new programs, Wip and ProMeetings, leading its industry section.

Festival board president Lorena Villarreal spearheads the festival, which will highlight a selection of world-class films sourced from top-tier festivals, including Cannes, Berlin, Tribeca and Sundance. “The Festival is also expanding its industry footprint to establish itself as a bridge between the U.S., Iberoamerica and Mexico while supporting our local industry in Nuevo Leon with more programs and notable guests and honorees to be announced very soon,” she said, listing the likes of Andrea Arnold’s “Bird” ; Agathe Riedinger’s debut film “Wild Diamond,” which world premiered in Cannes; the Sundance-winning doc “Sugarcane” by...

The queer romance film Viet and Nam, which premiered at the Un Certain Regard section of the Cannes Film Festival, will receive a North American release from Strand Releasing. The news comes after the film earned a perfect 100% score on Rotten Tomatoes.

The film, according to Variety, has been acquired by Strand Releasing and is set to be released at festivals in North America in early 2025. The film--which is a co-production between Vietnam, the Philippines, Singapore, France, Netherlands, Italy and Germany--tells the story of two young coal miners who fall in love and dream of a better future, but they are forced to make sacrifices in order to stay together as they face separation. Viet and Nam was directed by Truong Minh Qu, making it his second feature film, and stars Pham Thanh Hai and Dao Duy Bao Dinh. The film was produced by Epicmedia, in co-production with Cinema Inutile,...

Strand Releasing has acquired North American rights to “Viet and Nam” which premiered at this year’s Cannes Film Festival in Un Certain Regard.

Directed by Truong Minh Quý, the film tells the passionate love story of two young coal miners who face separation and ultimately make sacrifices to stay together. Represented in international markets by Pyramide International, “Viet and Nam” stars Pham Thanh Hai and Dao Duy Bao Dinh.

“’Viet and Nam’ was one of the most mesmerizing films I’ve seen in awhile, romantic, tragic and tender directed with a unique style that embodies the auteurs we cultivate,” said Marcus Hu of Strand Releasing.

“We are very happy that after its wonderful journey at Cannes in Un Certain Regard, Viet And Nam can now meet the American audience. We are also delighted to collaborate once again with Strand, one of our long-standing partners. We are confident that they...

From Aug. 17-23, the charming coastal town of Haugesund, Norway, will showcase 76 films and 21 shorts in the newly renovated Edda film hub, offering two extra screening rooms, bringing the total halls to seven.

“We are looking forward to using the two new luxury halls and giving both the films and the audience a quality experience,” said festival honcho Tonje Hardersen.

Many of the high-quality features will screen in the festival’s main program, including several Cannes entries making their Norwegian premiere, such as “All We Imagine as Light,” “The Substance,” “Wild Diamond,” “The Girl with the Needle” and “When the Light Breaks.”

Among the four world premieres, three hail from Norway, a nation that boasts an enviable list of 2024 fest winners, such as Sundance’s “A New Kind of Wilderness,” “Handling the Undead,” Berlin’s “Sex” and Karlovy Vary’s “Loveable,” all lined up for Haugesund as well.

“Once again,...

“Wild Diamond,” the feature debut of Agathe Riedinger which competed at this year’s Cannes Film Festival, has been acquired by Strand Releasing for North American rights.

The critically acclaimed film tells the story of Liane, a 19-year old girl whose quick rise to fame in the world of social influencers and media explodes when she gets cast in a reality TV show entitled Miracle Island.

“We’re thrilled to be handling the debut feature by Ms. Riedinger, we were entranced by this directorial new voice appearing in competition at the Cannes main slate,” said Strand Releasing’s Jon Gerrans who negotiated the deal and Agathe Mauruc at Pyramide International. Gerrans added that “Wild Diamond” “will resonate with audiences in North America as the film addresses our fascination and obsession with popularity on social media.”

“Wild Diamond” has sold in the following territories, Baltics, Benelux, Brazil, Bulgaria, Cis, Czech Republic,...

Matt Dillon, Alice Diop and Karla Sofia Gascon will bring their springtime spirit to this month’s Nouvelles Vagues Film Festival, now running from June 18 – 23 in Biarritz. Launched last year with the support of Chanel, the nascent festival invites both established and emerging talents to share an expansive vision of youth, hosting a competition dedicated to young adult stories overseen by a jury all under the age of 35.

“Across all sections, this festival shines the spotlight on younger generations and celebrates young characters on screen,” says programing director Lili Hinstin. “We wanted to look to the future through the prism of the next generation, and to interrogate the questions and contemporary issues important to them.”

To that end, this sophomore edition kicked off with the world premiere of “Night Call,” a Brussels-set thriller, taking place over the course of one heated night, foisting an unsuspecting locksmith into a criminal underworld...

Cannes Do Spirit

Coralie Fargeat’s Demi Moore-starring feminist body horror film “The Substance” has been set as the closing night title for the New Zealand International Film Festival. The picture is one of 16 which premiered at the Cannes Film Festival last month selected for the Nziff which is now under the artistic leadership of Paolo Bertolin.

The Nziff’s Fresh” strand features: “Good One,” by India Donaldson (daughter of New Zealand cinema legend Roger Donaldson); “To A Land Unknown,” by Mahdi Fleifel; Truong Minh Quý’s “Viet and Nam” a journey of young miners in Vietnam; Mo Harawe’s “The Village Next to Paradise”; and Agathe Riedinger’s “Wild Diamond.”

The “Widescreen” strand showcases films including: Chinese director Guan Hu’s Un Certain Regard-winning “Black Dog”; Mohammad Rasoulof’s “The Seed of the Sacred Fig,” which took home Cannes’ Special Jury Prize; Boris Lojkine’s “The Story of Souleymane...

Ioncinema.com’s Chief Film Critic Nicholas Bell reviewed the entire competition and more. Here is a comprehensive guide to all the feature films across all sections, including logged reviews and forthcoming ones. Though Cannes might be over, we still have unpublished reviews that will be released over the next month.

In Competition:

All We Imagine as Light – [Review]

Anora – [Review]

The Apprentice – [Review]

Beating Hearts – [Review]

Bird – [Review]

Caught by the Tides – [Review]

Emilia Pérez – [Review]

The Girl with the Needle – [Review]

Grand Tour – [Review]

Kinds of Kindness – [Review]

Limonov: The Ballad – [Review]

Marcello Mio – [Review]

Megalopolis – [Review]

The Most Precious of Cargoes – [Review]

Motel Destino – [Review]

Oh, Canada – [Review]

Parthenope – [Review]

The Seed of the Sacred Fig – [Review]

The Shrouds – [Review]

The Substance – [Review]

Three Kilometres to the End of the World – [Review]

Wild Diamond – [Review]

Un Certain Regard:

Armand

Black Dog

The Damned – [Review]

Dog on Trial

Flow

Holy Cow – [Review]

The Kingdom

My Sunshine

Niki

Norah

On Becoming a Guinea Fowl

Santosh

September Says

The Shameless

The Story of Souleymane...

Cannes showcases some of the best upcoming movies, including controversial films like "The Apprentice" and thought-provoking works like "Bird." Movies like "The Invasion" reflect current society, focusing on the war in Ukraine, while "Oh, Canada" and "Megalopolis" tackle deep and complex narratives. With star-studded casts and unique storytelling, films like "My Sunshine" and "Wild Diamond" offer emotional depth and societal commentary at Cannes.

As the Cannes Film Festival 2024 starts to wrap up, its worth taking a look at the most exciting movies coming out of the event. The Cannes Film Festival occurs annually and is held in Cannes, France. The event highlights titles that are expected to become some of the best movies of all time. For the 77th Cannes Film Festival, Barbie and Lady Bird director Greta Gerwig will serve as jury president for the main competition in 2024.

The yearly festival is one of the most anticipated celebrations of cinema in the world.

Mohammad Rasoulof’s “The Seed of the Sacred Fig” has a lot going for it on the way to a potential Palme d’Or win: strong reviews, an anguished political call-out against Iranian oppression, and Rasoulof’s own status as an exile who just fled his home country and was finally able to attend Cannes after all. (Read our interview with the director here.)

On the steps of the Palais for Friday’s premiere, Rasoulof held up photos of two of the actors — Misagh Zare and Soheila Golestani – banned from leaving Iran to attend the festival. He’s already shared how the Islamic Republic has been pressuring his crew into convincing Cannes to drop the film, which charts the breakdown of a family after a Revolutionary Court judge’s gun goes missing, from its lineup. This is Rasoulof’s first time in competition. He previously won prizes in Un Certain...

From politics to buzz films, star appearances and deal making, there was – as always – plenty to talk about at this year’s Cannes Film Festival. Screen gathers together the major discussion points of this year’s festival.

Muted politics

In the build-up to Cannes, there was much talk about how this year’s festival was set to be the most politically charged edition of recent years, amid Israel’s war on Gaza, festival workers threatening strike action and rumours of bombshell #MeToo accusations set to rock the French industry. The result was far more muted, with the #MeToo accusations quickly...

Few periods on the calendar mean more to cinephiles than the two weekends in May occupied by the Cannes Film Festival. Since its founding in 1946, the French festival has been a launchpad for some of the most artistically significant films of all time. The Palme d’Or is one of the most coveted film awards on the planet, and the festival’s ability to balance subversive arthouse work with major Hollywood premieres has led many to view it as the world’s most significant celebration of cinema.

The 2024 lineup featured a mix of buzzy premieres from New Hollywood titans like Francis Ford Coppola and Paul Schrader alongside exciting new works from emerging directors. Between the Main Competition, Un Certain Regard, special screenings, and sidebars like the Directors’ Fortnight and Critics’ Week, the onslaught of new films can be overwhelming for anyone who isn’t able to give the festival their 24/7 attention.

Agathe Riedinger’s debut feature Wild Diamond has dazzled buyers following its premiere in Cannes Competition, with France’s Pyramide International selling the film to key territories.

The film has been scooped up by Wild Bunch Germany for German-speaking territories, Caramel in Spain, Filmcoopie in Switzerland, September Film in Benelux, Academy Two in Italy, Beta Film in Bulgaria and Mars Production in Turkey. Deals with Latin America, Portugal, Sweden, Cis and ex-Yugoslavia are also in the works.

The film is about a 19 year-old girl in southern France, played by newcomer Malou Khebizi, obsessed with beauty and the quest for fame...

Haha…Arri learned from us and created a camera chart of the Arri cameras that were used to shoot Cannes 2024 films. According to the chart, the new Alexa 35 is booming. In the 2nd place is the Mini Lf, and the 3rd belongs to the good and old Alexa Mini.

Arri Alexa 35. The winner of Cannes 2024? Arri cameras at Cannes 2024

As the tradition continues, Arri cameras are preferred among Cannes filmmakers. For instance, the Alexa Mini and Mini Lf were the chosen cameras by the Cannes 2023 cinematographers. It appears that in Cannes 2024 there’s no difference besides the rise of the newest Alexa, which is the 35. Arri felt inspired by Y.M.Cinema charts and released its own Cannes 2024 camera chart focusing on Arri cameras. According to Arri’s chart, the Alexa 35 is in the first place as the weapon of choice of Cannes 2024 cinematographers. After that, there are the Mini Lf,...

This year’s Cannes competition began with a film set in a working-class environment where a young woman with a single mother dreamed of escaping it all through dance. It was Agathe Riedinger’s Wild Diamond, but squint the eyes and forget the sunny coastal scenery and you could have been watching Andrea Arnold’s Fish Tank, a winner of the jury prize here fifteen years ago. Arnold now returns to the Croisette with Bird, remarkably just her third narrative film since and her closest to it, in many ways––up-and-coming stars next to non-professional actors, kitchen-sink realism, great music, sketchy dudes––although this time with Franz Rogowski playing a queer-coded Mary Poppins who might be a seagull.

Bird stars Nykiya Adams as Bailey, a young girl living with her father, Bug (a tattooed Barry Keoghan in a touching performance), in a free-spirited community house in a British coastal town.

Pim Herrmeling, head of Benelux- based September Films has warned the territory’s buyers are becoming more cautious due to high asking prices.

“Normally, all Cannes Competition films are pre-sold for Benelux. This year, a lot of films were still available,” Herrmeling noted. “On the hot films, there is still a lot of competition but not as early as it used to be.”

As of press time, Paolo Sorrentino’s Parthenope was unsold in the region.

“MGs have gone up in general, which is a bit strange,” said Hermeling

“Home entertainment/VoD is completely gone. SVoD is Ok on the...

by Cláudio Alves

Wild Diamond (2024) Agathe Riedinger

The first two days of competition screenings have whipped up a storm at the Cannes Film Festival. Things started normal enough with Agathe Riedinger's Wild Diamond, this year's only feature debut vying for the Palme. Reactions were a tad tepid, but the same can't be said about Magnus van Horn's Girl with the Needle, which has horrified some viewers. All hell broke loose on the second day of competition, when both Andrea Arnold's Bird and Francis Ford Coppola's Megalopolis had their world premieres. The British auteur earned general praise, though some found it confounding. As for the American master's long-awaited opus, opinions are so divided that a chasm seems to have broken open across the Croisette. Some say it's a catastrophe of epic proportions, while others see value in its epic mess. Whatever the case, it sounds like a fascinating watch,...

“Last year, as you know, we had a few polemics,” admitted Cannes General Delegate Thierry Fremaux at the opening of the 77th edition on Tuesday. “This year we decided to host a festival without polemics to make sure that the main interest for us all to be here is cinema.” With ignorance this willful, you have to laugh. Cannes has gotten so used to sweeping its problems under the rug that no one seems to know when, how, or if the Sous les Écrans la Dèche strike–-which would affect some 200 projectionists, programmers, floor managers, and press officers working the […]

The post Cannes 2024: The Second Act, An Unfinished Film and Wild Diamond first appeared on Filmmaker Magazine.

“Last year, as you know, we had a few polemics,” admitted Cannes General Delegate Thierry Fremaux at the opening of the 77th edition on Tuesday. “This year we decided to host a festival without polemics to make sure that the main interest for us all to be here is cinema.” With ignorance this willful, you have to laugh. Cannes has gotten so used to sweeping its problems under the rug that no one seems to know when, how, or if the Sous les Écrans la Dèche strike–-which would affect some 200 projectionists, programmers, floor managers, and press officers working the […]

The post Cannes 2024: The Second Act, An Unfinished Film and Wild Diamond first appeared on Filmmaker Magazine.

UK-based sales house Unannounced Film Company has boarded international sales on documentary Children Of The Wicker Man for the Cannes Market.

Justin and Dominic Hardy’s film centres around their father Robin Hardy and the making of his 1973 cult horror film The Wicker Man.

Despite being considered one of the greatest films of all time, Hardy’s sons have a complex relationship with the film and the impact it had on their relationship with their father. Along with researcher Chris Nunn, who also directs the documentary, the pair delve into a box of recently discovered production documents from The Wicker Man...

We kicked off the competition of twenty-two films with a debut feature, which is worth noting given the rarity of newbies in the competition section. It marks two consecutive years for a first feature from a female filmmaker, following Ramata-Toulaye Sy’s Banel & Adama being selected for 2023. Perhaps this signals a new philosophical trend by Thierry Frémaux? Part of a very small French presence in the Palme d’Or comp this year, Agathe Riedinger‘s Wild Diamond (aka Diamant brute) was shot in May of last year and it was produced by Priscilla Bertin and Judith Nora for Silex Films.…...

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Cannes Film Festival in Cannes, France has begun. One of the biggest film festivals in the world is a metropolis for the latest films and what is coming next in Cinema. While not every film buff has the opportunity to attend, there is still plenty to look out for this Cannes Film Festival season. Here is everything we know before the curtain rises. Things to do: Subscribe to The Hollywood Insider’s YouTube Channel, by clicking here. Limited Time Offer – Free Subscription to The Hollywood Insider Click here to read more on The Hollywood Insider’s vision, values and mission statement here – Media has the responsibility to better our world – The Hollywood Insider fully focuses on substance and meaningful entertainment, against gossip and scandal, by combining entertainment, education, and philanthropy. Judges Cannes features a large jury of different judges from all around the world...

The first scores have landed on Screen’s 2024 Cannes jury grid with Agathe Riedinger’s Wild Diamond receiving an average score of 2.1.

The French filmmaker’s debut received nine scores of two (average) while Katja Nicodemus from Germany’s Die Zeit and Screen’s own critic gave it three (good). This was rounded off by a one star (poor) from Bangkok Post’s Kong Rithdee.

Click on the jury grid above for the most up-to-date version.

Wild Diamond follows a 19-year-old woman who sets her heart on success as a reality show star. Newcomer Malou Khebizi leads the way...

Religion, Karl Marx said, is the opiate of the masses. Today, he would likely say that the opiate of the masses is fame — the desire for it, the things you have to do to get it, the fragmentary nature of it, and everything it’s supposed to bring you. The new fame, the lusty fickle kind bred by social media, is at the center of the startlingly bold French drama “Wild Diamond.”

It tells the story of Liane (Malou Khebizi), a 19-year-old glam trainwreck who lives with her mother and kid sister in the town of Fréjus in Southern France. Liane’s entire existence is driven by her compulsion to connect with the up-from-nowhere apparatus of fame, the kind that transforms people on Instagram and TikTok — and, the subject of “Wild Diamond,” reality TV — into overnight spangly vessels of adoration.

In the first scene, Liane is in a department store,...

From her debut feature, French filmmaker Agathe Riedinger wants a sparkling yet still-realistic account of the thorny relationship between youth and fame. Wild Diamond is the first film to screen in this year’s Cannes Official Competition and it owns it, not least by including a quippy response about the main character potentially becoming an actress in a Croisette festival film. Riedinger knows the protagonist very well by now, having made Waiting for Jupiter in 2017, a short where she introduced Liane, a young girl living in the South of France who dreams of becoming a reality-tv star. Seven years later, Wild Diamond provides the canvas for a fuller character study with a wonderfully dedicated Malou Khebizi in its lead role.

From its opening sequence, Liane is the center of attention: we see her sway around a light pole of sorts in a wide shot. It’s pitch-black, but her high-heeled...

The heart of “Wild Diamond,” the only debut to play in competition at Cannes this year, is a story we’ve seen before. A young woman living in grim-to-disappointing circumstances has dreams of stardom, and her journey toward fame takes her to dark places, physically and emotionally. You can find versions of this scenario in Andrea Arnold’s “Fish Tank” to Ninja Thyberg’s “Pleasure.” Director Agathe Riedinger’s debut feature has little new to say about the pursuit of fame and the toll it takes despite a truly unique heroine in Liane, played with a strange and alluring distance by Malou Khebizi. It’s only a shame that the film does her a disservice in leaving the world around her underdeveloped.

The 19-year-old Liane has mastered the art of making herself up for the internet. In one sequence, we watch as she gets ready. She contours her face with precision.

Teenage Wasteland: Riedinger’s Debut a Familiar Coming-of-Age Parade

All that glitters isn’t gold, but social media success can break the mould. At least that’s the hopeful nugget bestowed upon the wayward heroine of Agathe Riedinger’s debut, Wild Diamond (Diamant Brut). In the well grooved tradition of coming-of-age cinema (especially French cinema), Riedinger certainly isn’t taking any big risks in her tale of a troubled teen obsessed with social media and reality television as a means of escape from the sordid conditions of a down-and-out home life. And yet, there’s certainly a historical value in comparing the softly evolving transitions of what life is like for teenage girls reared in a contradictory world where their worth is dictated by their desirability, while it’s expected they do not act upon the satisfaction of their own desires.…...

The only debut feature world premiering in competition at the Cannes Film Festival, “Wild Diamond” is poised to be a highlight of this year’s roster. In the film, promising French director Agathe Riedinger tackles timely themes such as the hyper-sexualization of women and rape culture through the story of Liane, a 19-year old woman from a broken family whose dream is to take part in a reality show called “Miracle Island.” The movie expands on “Waiting for Jupiter,” Riedinger’s critically acclaimed 2018 short.

The long-gestating “Wild Diamond” is produced by Priscilla Bertin and Judith Nora at Paris-based Silex Films and is represented in international markets by Pyramide International. Ahead of the movie’s world premiere, Riedinger discussed the genesis of the project and her own fascination with reality TV, as well as her process for casting and working with talented non-professionals such as Malou Khebizi, who is in nearly every frame of the movie.