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PRODUCTION France

Asghar Farhadi shoots in Paris

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- The Iranian Oscar-winning film director is currently shooting his first film in French starring Bérénice Bejo and Tahar Rahim

Since October 8, Iranian Oscar-winning film director Asghar Farhadi (photo) has been filming his first film in the French language in Paris. Produced by Alexandre Mallet-Guy for Memento, the (so far untitled) feature film is to star Bérénice Bejo (2012 Cesar for Best Actress for The Artist [+see also:
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interview: Michel Hazanavicius
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]
and nominated for an Oscar and Golden Globe for best supporting actress, soon out in cinemas in Populaire and The Scapegoat), Tahar Rahim (2010 Cesar for Best Actor for A Prophet [+see also:
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interview: Jacques Audiard
interview: Jacques Audiard and Tahar R…
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, recently well reviewed for Our Children [+see also:
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, and who was just on set of Chrysalis and Grand Central), and Iranian actor Ali Mosaffa. They are to appear alongside Belgian actress Pauline Burlet (who played the role of Edith Piaf as a child in La Vie en Rose [+see also:
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), Elyes Aguis, Jeanne Jestin, and Babak Karimi.

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At the age of forty, Asghar Farhadi has already directed five feature films including About Elly (Silver Bear for Best Director in Berlin in 2009) and A Separation (Golden Bear at the 2011 Berlinale and 2012 Oscar for Best Film in a Foreign Language, nominated for the Oscar for best screenplay). Last May, it also won the European Union’s MEDIA Prize. The plot of his first film in French has been carefully kept secret.

The film is to be shot over the course of 14 weeks until January 11 and should be ready in spring 2013. It is co-produced by the Italians from BIM Distribuzione and France 3 Cinéma. Supported by Eurimages, an advance on receipts from the National Film and Moving Image Centre (CNC), the Ile-de-France region, Alvy Distribution, and CN3 Productions, it has also been pre-acquired by Canal+ and Ciné+. Sofica Cofinova, Palatine, Indefilms, and Cinémage are also on board. Memento is to handle the film’s distribution in France and its international sales (launched in Cannes and successfully continued in Toronto).

Memento’s sales team is also making preparations for the American Film Market (from October 31 to November 7) where they will notably also continue their pre-sales for Agnès Jaoui’s Under The Rainbow (read more). Emilie Georges and Tanja Meissner’s team also has four contenders for the 2013 Oscar for best film in a foreign language in its line-up: Ursula Meier’s Sister [+see also:
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interview: Kacey Mottet Klein
interview: Ursula Meier
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]
to represent Switzerland, Cate Shortland’s German co-production Lore to represent Australia, Pen-Ek Ratanaruang’s Headshot to represent Thailand, and Rodrigo Pla’s French co-production La Demora to represent Uruguay.

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(Translated from French)

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