22/04/2014 - Hope and Gente de bien aim for the Grand Prix. Also lined up are FLA, Respire, Hippocrate and L'Institutrice

France will be well represented at the 53^rd edition of Critics’ Week, which will take place May 15-23 within the context of the 67^th Cannes Film Festival. Six out of the eleven selected feature length films are French productions. 

In competition, Hope (read the article) by Boris Lojkine, the first feature length fiction film by a documentary filmmaker to be selected. Written by the filmmaker himself, the screenplay tells the story of a meeting in the middle of the Sahara of a Cameroonian woman and a Nigerian one, who are blocked as they try to make their way to Europe. Produced by Bruno Nahon for Zadig Films, Hope was coproduced by Ink Production and Sylicone, and was supported through revenue anticipation by CNC. Distribution in France and internationally will be taken care of by Pyramide.

Another French production will be aiming at the Grand Prix: Gente de bien by Columbian Franco Lolli, who trained in La Fémis and spent his residency at the Cannes Cinéfondation. The debut piece of work was produced by Parisian Geko Films (Grégoire Debailly) with Evidencia Film. Ad Vitam will distribute it in France and Versatile will take care of international sales.

As an out of competition event, the week will feature FLA by Djinn Carrenard (news), second film by Donoma [+see also:
film review
trailer
film profile] (Louis-Delluc 2011 award for best debut film). Written by the director, the screenplay explores the theme of the couple. The cast includes Maha, Laurette Lalande, Despo Rutti and Saul Williams. Produced by Salomé Blechmans for Donoma Guérilla, FLA was co-produced by Arte France Cinéma. Bought by Canal+, the film also benefitted from anticipated funds on revenue from CNC. It will be distributed in France by ARP Sélection and sold across the world by Elle Driver.

Respire (article) will be screened out of competition. The film is the second film by actress Mélanie Laurent after Les adoptés [+see also:
trailer
film profile] (2011). The cast includes Lou de Laâge, Joséphine Japy and Isabelle Carré. Liberally inspired by the novel by Anne-Sophie Brasme, the screenplay, written by Mélanie Laurent and Julien Lambroschini, is centred around two teenagers. Produced by Bruno Lévy for Move Movie, Respire was co-produced by Gaumont (which will take care of distribution in France and internationally) and by Mely Productions.

Also out of competition, Hippocrate by Thomas Lilti (article) will close the 2014 edition of Critics’ Week. The second feature length film from the director of Yeux bandés [+see also:
trailer
film profile] (2008) has a cast including Vincent Lacoste, Jacques Gamblin, Reda Kateb, Félix Moati, Marianne Denicourt and Carole Franck. Written by the director with Baya Kasmi, Pierre Chosson and Julien Lilti, the screenplay was centred around a medical student who is going through his first internship with his father, with things not going as he had imagined. Produced by Agnès Vallée and Emmanuel Barraux for 31 Juin Films, Hippocrate benefitted from a co-production by France 2 Cinéma, pre-acquisitions by Canal+ and Ciné+, and an anticipation on revenue by CNC. Distribution in France and internationally will be taken care of by Le Pacte.

Another special screening will be Israeli French production The Kindergarden Teacher by Nadav Lapid, co-produced by Arte France Cinéma and Haut et Court (which will take care of distribution in France), and sold across the world by Le Pacte.

Finally, among the titles in competition, Gaumont will be selling Danish film When Animals Dream by Jonas Alexander Arnby and Alpha Violet’s The Tribe by Ukrainian Myroslav Slaboshpytskiy.

(Translated from French)