21/08/2024 - The French sales agent will be pinning its hopes on the Coulin sisters’ The Quiet Son and Stranger Eyes by Yeo Siew Hua in competition, as well as on Diciannove by Giovanni Tortorici in Orizzonti

As was the case in 2018 and 2019, French international sales agent Playtime will be brandishing two films in the race for the Golden Lion that is set to be handed out at the end of the 81st Venice Film Festival (28 August-7 September), and it fully intends to strike some fruitful deals with them at the market organised on the Lido before immediately following this up with visits to Toronto and San Sebastián with several other solid titles in its catalogue.

Playtime’s first competitor at Venice is The Quiet Son [+see also:
film review
trailer
interview: Delphine and Muriel Coulin
film profile], the third feature by French directors Delphine and Muriel Coulin, following two films that were both unveiled at Cannes (17 Girls [+see also:
trailer
film profile] in the 2011 Critics’ Week and The Stopover [+see also:
film review
trailer
interview: Delphine and Muriel Coulin
film profile], which won a prize for its screenplay in Un Certain Regard in 2016). Starring Vincent Lindon, Benjamin Voisin and Stefan Crepon, the Felicita Films and Curiosa Films production will be world-premiered on 4 September. The plot revolves around 50-year-old Pierre, who is raising his two sons alone. The three of them are very close. Louis, the youngest, is about to leave home to go to university in Paris. Fus, slightly older, is becoming secretive. Fascinated by violence, he becomes active in far-right extremist groups, at the polar opposite of his father's values. Between them, there is love and hate, until tragedy strikes.

Another third feature will be the second ace up Playtime’s sleeve, screening in competition on the Lido: Stranger Eyes [+see also:
film review
trailer
film profile] by Singapore’s Yeo Siew Hua (who was victorious at Locarno in 2018 with A Land Imagined [+see also:
film review
trailer
film profile]), which is a co-production between Singapore (Akanga Film Asia), Taiwan (Volos Films), France (Films de Force Majeure) and the USA (Cinema Inutile), with the support of the CNC’s Aide aux cinémas du monde scheme. The story centres on a young couple who, after the unexplained disappearance of their baby daughter, receive strange videos and realise that someone has been filming their daily life, even in their most intimate moments. The police set up surveillance to arrest the voyeur they suspect of the kidnapping. But the family starts to crumble as secrets come to light under the scrutiny of eyes watching them from all sides. Interestingly, the film (which will be world-premiered on 5 September) will subsequently go on to screen at the New York Film Festival (29 September-15 October).

At Venice, the Playtime team, headed up by Nicolas Brigaud-Robert, Sébastien Beffa and François Yon, will also have high hopes for Diciannove [+see also:
film review
trailer
film profile], the feature debut by Italy’s Giovanni Tortorici. Produced by Milan-based outfits Frenesy Films, MeMo Films and Tenderstories together with the UK’s Pinball London, the film revolves around 19-year-old Leonardo, who leaves Palermo to start university in London. However, while living with his sister and her roommate, the initial excitement soon wears off. Restless, he impulsively enrols in the University of Siena to study Literature and falls in love with the city. Yet, finding his Literature professor unbearable, he quits and decides to dive into the Italian classics by himself. This reflective solitude sparks an inner journey of self-discovery, intensified by encounters with vibrant youth. A year after, Leonardo travels to Turin and meets a man who may relieve him of his obsessions. After Venice, Diciannove will then enjoy its international premiere at the Toronto Film Festival (5-15 September), in the Discovery section.

Two other titles on the Playtime line-up will be showcased at Toronto: Carnival Is Over by Brazil’s Fernando Coimbra as a Special Presentation (produced by Gullane Filmes together with Portugal’s Fado Filmes, zooming in on a family of criminals in Rio de Janeiro) and Monsieur Aznavour by France’s Grand Corps Malade and Medhi Idir (starring Tahar Rahim in the title role) on the Industry Selects programme.

What promises to be an action-packed period for Playtime will continue at the San Sebastián Film Festival (20-28 September) with two films in competition: When Fall Is Coming [+see also:
trailer
film profile] by François Ozon and Last Breath by Costa-Gavras. In the Basque city, they will be joined by the successful Cannes Première title The Marching Band [+see also:
film review
trailer
interview: Emmanuel Courcol
film profile] by France’s Emmanuel Courcol, which will get an airing in the Perlak section. And that’s not to mention the numerous movies in post-production on the line-up, such as Eagles of the Republic by Sweden’s Tarik Saleh, La Femme la plus riche du Monde by Thierry Klifa (toplined by Isabelle Huppert – see the article), Rembrandt by Pierre Schoeller (see the article) and Stealing Angel by Robert Guédiguian (see the article).

(Translated from French)