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CANNES 2017 Critics’ Week / France

7 French (co-)productions for Critics’ Week

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- A Violent Life, Bloody Milk, Ava and Makala in the line-up along with three French minority co-productions

7 French (co-)productions for Critics’ Week
A Violent Life by Thierry de Peretti (© Elise Pinelli / Les Films Velvet)

Thierry de Peretti, Hubert Charuel, Léa Mysius and Emanuel Gras: four French filmmakers have been selected with their first or second feature films for the 56th Critics’ Week, which will take place from 18 to 26 May as part of the 70th Cannes Film Festival.

There will be a special screening of A Violent Life [+see also:
film review
trailer
film profile
]
, the second feature film by Thierry de Peretti, who rose to prominence at Directors’ Fortnight in 2013 with Les Apaches [+see also:
film review
trailer
film profile
]
. The cast, which includes a number of amateur actors, features Jean Michelangeli, Henri-Noël Tabary, Cédric Appieto and Marie-Pierre Nouveau. The screenplay, which was written by the director with Guillaume Bréaud, centres around a man who, in spite of the death threat hanging over him, returns to Corsica for the funeral of a childhood friend. It is a chance for him to think back to the events that saw him go from an educated lower-middle-class young man from Bastia to a delinquent, a political radical and finally a fugitive. Produced by Frédéric Jouve and Marie Lecoq for Les Films Velvet, A Violent Life was made on a budget of €3.58 million, which included co-production support from Arte France Cinéma and Stanley White, support in the form of pre-purchases from Canal+ and OCS, and an advance on receipts from the CNC and the Corsica region. The film will be released in France and sold internationally by Pyramide.

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There will also be a special screening of Bloody Milk [+see also:
film review
trailer
interview: Hubert Charuel
film profile
]
, Hubert Charuel’s debut feature film, starring Swann Arlaud, Sara Giraudeau, Belgian actor Bouli Lanners, Isabelle Candelier and Valentin Lespinasse. Written by the director and Claude Le Pape, the screenplay centres around a farmer in his thirties who discovers, in the early days of an epidemic in France, that one of his cows is infected… Produced by Stéphanie Bermann and Alexis Dulguerian for Domino Films, Bloody Milk was made on a budget of €3.24 million, which included co-production support from France 2 Cinéma, pre-purchases from Canal+ et OCS, and an advance on receipts from the CNC, the Alsace Champagne‑Ardenne Lorraine region and the Gan Foundation for Film. The film will be released in France by Pyramide, which is also handling international sales.

With her debut feature Ava [+see also:
film review
trailer
interview: Léa Mysius
film profile
]
, Léa Mysius will also be competing for the Critics’ Week Grand Prix. The film stars Noée Abita, Laure Calamy and Juan Cano. Written by the director and Paul Guilhaume, the screenplay centres around Ava, a 13-year-old girl who is holidaying by the sea when she learns that she’ll lose her sight a lot quicker than she thought… Produced by Jean-Louis Livi for F Comme Film and Fanny Yvonnet for Trois Brigands Productions on a budget of €2.8 million, Ava has been pre-purchased by Canal+ and notably received support in the form of an advance on receipts from the CNC and Nouvelle-Aquitaine region. The film will be released in France on 21 June by Bac Films, which is also handling international sales.

Emmanuel Gras is also in the running with Makala [+see also:
film review
trailer
interview: Emmanuel Gras
film profile
]
, his second documentary after the acclaimed Bovines (nominated for the César for Best Documentary in 2013). The film plunges us into the Congo as we follow a young villager who, in the hope of offering his family a better future, sets off on dangerous and exhausting journeys to sell the fruits of his labour… The film was produced by Nicolas Anthomé and Carmen Leroi for Bathysphère, with support from the CNC, the Auvergne Rhône-Alpes region, Ciné+, Canal+ International, and Procirep-Angoa. Distribution in France and international sales are being handled by Les Films du Losange.

Three minority French co-productions have also been selected. First up there’s Sicilian Ghost Story [+see also:
film review
trailer
making of
film profile
]
by Fabio Grassadonia and Antonio Piazza, which will open Critics’ Week in a special screening. The film was produced for Italy by Indigo Film and Cristaldi Pictures with Rai Cinema, and co-produced by Antoine de Clermont Tonnerre for Parisian company Mact Productions and by Ventura Film for Switzerland. The film will be released in France by Jour2Fête, and sold by The Match Factory.

Los perros [+see also:
film review
trailer
film profile
]
by Chilean director Marcela Said, who also has her sights set on the Grand Prix, was produced by Tom Dercourt and Sophie Erbs for Cinema Defacto with Chilean company Jirafa Films, and co-produced by Argentinian company Rei Cine, Portuguese company Terratreme Filmes, and German company Augenschein Filmproduktion. Sales are being handled by Films Boutique.

Last but not least, Gabriel and the Mountain [+see also:
film review
trailer
film profile
]
by Brazilian filmmaker Fellipe Gamarano Barbosa, which will also be battling it out in competition, was co-produced by Yohann Cornu for Damned Films. It will be released in France by Version Originale Condor on 16 August, and is being sold by Films Boutique.

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(Translated from French)

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