16/04/2010

Three French directors will vie for the Palme d’Or at the 63rd Cannes Film Festival (May 12-23): Bertrand Tavernier, Xavier Beauvois and Mathieu Amalric.

Tavernier (69) will make his fourth appearance in competition at Cannes after 1980, 1984 (Best Director) and 1990. He will unveil his 24th feature, La Princesse de Montpensier [+see also:
film review
trailer
film profile] (see news), which traces the passions and tragic fate of a princess in the French kingdom of 1562.

The cast includes Mélanie Thierry, Gaspard Ulliel, Grégoire Leprince-Ringuet and Lambert Wilson. Produced by Paradis Films for €13.35m, the film was co-produced by France 2 Cinéma and France 3 Cinéma, pre-bought by Canal+ andCiné Cinéma, and backed by the National Film and Moving Image Centre (CNC) with an advance on receipts. StudioCanal (also co-producer) will manage French distribution and international sales.

Beauvois (43) also returns to the competition, after winning the Jury Prize in 1995 for Don’t Forget You’re Going To Die. He will present his fifth feature, Of Gods and Men [+see also:
film review
trailer
interview: Xavier Beauvois
film profile] (see news), which is inspired by the monks of Tibhirine affair and stars Lambert Wilson, Michael Lonsdale, Olivier Rabourdin, Roschdy Zem and Sabrina Ouazani.

Produced by Why Not for a €4m budget, the film received co-production backing from Armada Films and France 3 Cinéma, and an advance on receipts from the CNC. It will be released in France by Mars Distribution, and sold internationally by Wild Bunch.

Actor Amalric (44) will make his Cannes competition debut as a director with his fourth directorial feature Tournée [+see also:
film review
trailer
interview: Mathieu Amalric
interview: Mathieu Amalric
film profile] (“Tour”, see news), in which he stars alongside Mimi Le Meaux, Damien Odoul and Ulysse Klotz. The film centres on a French show producer and a troupe of American New Burlesque performers who tour the port cities before staging a final show in Paris.

The film was produced by Films du Poisson for €3.52m. The budget included co-production support from Arte France Cinéma and Germany’s Neue Mediopolis Film Produktion, an advance on receipts from the CNC, backing through the Franco-German mini-treaty and pre-acquisitions from Canal + and TPS. French distribution and international sales rights have been acquired by Le Pacte.

(Translated from French)