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CANNES 2017 Market / France

The transformation of Coby for Alpha Violet

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- The French company’s line-up includes the documentary by Christian Sonderegger in its world premiere in the ACID section, and the debut feature by Agnieszka Smoczynska

The transformation of Coby for Alpha Violet
Coby by Christian Sonderegger

At the Film Market of the 70th Cannes Film Festival (being held from 17 to 28 May), Parisian international sales company Alpha Violet will be backing Coby [+see also:
film review
trailer
film profile
]
by Christian Sonderegger, which will have its world premiere on the Croisette as part of the ACID selection.

Produced by Ciaofilm (Moïra Vautier) and Willow Films (Marie-Castille Mention-Schaar), this documentary centres around Susanna who, at the age of 23, announces to her family that she wants to change gender. It starts with her taking testosterone, then comes the surgery. To get those close to her used to the idea, Susanna cuts her hair, starts dressing like a boy and takes a transitional name: Coby. It’s devastating for her partner Sara, as well as for those closest to her: her mother, father and work colleagues. They are all faced with this strange metamorphosis, which is also exposed to the whole world on YouTube with a new video each day, one step closer to this new body. Strong images document her physical transformation, as well as her psychological and emotional evolution, as everything changes for Cody: her body, her voice, her feelings and desires. Her mother, father, and all those who love her also undergoing a change, forced by the situation to do some soul-searching of their own. But there’s one last step before the transformation can be complete: a hysterectomy. An irreversible decision, made even heavier by the fact that Coby’s partner, Sara, doesn’t want to carry a child. If Coby has her uterus removed, she will definitively abandon the tremendous power bestowed on women, the power to give life.

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At Cannes, Virginie Devesa and Keiko Funato’s team will also be launching pre-sales for Fugue [+see also:
film review
trailer
interview: Agnieszka Smoczyńska
film profile
]
by Polish director Agnieszka Smoczynska (who won the Special Jury Prize last year at Sundance with her debut feature The Lure [+see also:
film review
trailer
interview: Agnieszka Smoczyńska
film profile
]
). A production bringing together Polish company MD4 and Czech company Axman, the film, which is currently in pre-production, focuses on a woman’s realisation after becoming a mother, and the fact that to allow yourself to be reborn, you have to leave the past in the past.

Alpha Violet’s line-up also includes Il Cratere by Italian filmmakers Silvia Luzi and Luca Bellino (in post-production - see news article), as well as the mysterious and highly-anticipated Luxembourg by Ukranian director Myroslav Slaboshpytskiy (The Tribe [+see also:
trailer
film profile
]
), which is currently in production.

(The article continues below - Commercial information)

(Translated from French)

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