19/09/2019 - Diane Rouxel, Jalil Lespert, Olivier Gourmet and Finnegan Oldfield are among the cast of this Diligence Films production, which will be distributed in France by Ad Vitam and sold by Kinology

The first clapperboard will slam on 30 September for Beasts [+see also:
film review
trailer
film profile], the second feature by Naël Marandin, who made a splash with She Walks [+see also:
trailer
film profile] (2016). With this film, Marandin continues exploring a type of fiction strongly rooted in reality, as he plunges into the world of animal farming, where the livestock market and local agricultural policies become an arena for power relations and desire to come to the fore.

The cast includes Diane Rouxel (nominated for the César Award for Most Promising Actress in 2016 for Standing Tall [+see also:
film review
trailer
interview: Emmanuelle Bercot
film profile], popular in Head Above Water [+see also:
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trailer
film profile], A Paris Education [+see also:
film review
trailer
interview: Jean-Paul Civeyrac
film profile], Raising Colors [+see also:
film review
trailer
film profile] and The Wild Boys [+see also:
film review
trailer
interview: Bertrand Mandico
film profile]), Jalil Lespert (César Award for Most Promising Actor in 2001 for Human Resources, giving a strong performance in The Young Lieutenant [+see also:
trailer
film profile], seen recently in Bro [+see also:
trailer
film profile]), Belgium’s Olivier Gourmet (Best Actor Award at Cannes in 2002 for The Son [+see also:
trailer
film profile], nominated for the César Award for Best Actor in 2012 for The Minister [+see also:
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interview: Pierre Schoeller
film profile] and for the same category of the 2019 Magrittes for Above the Law [+see also:
film review
trailer
interview: François Troukens
film profile], superb in this year’s titles Conviction [+see also:
trailer
film profile] and Edmond [+see also:
trailer
interview: Alexis Michalik
film profile], set to grace screens from 25 September in Those Who Work [+see also:
film review
trailer
interview: Antoine Russbach
film profile], from 13 November in An Officer and a Spy [+see also:
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trailer
film profile] and from 8 January in The Breitner Commando) and Finnegan Oldfield (nominated for the César Award for Most Promising Actor in 2018 and 2016 for Reinventing Marvin [+see also:
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film profile] and Cowboys [+see also:
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film profile], and for the Lumières Award for Best New Actor in 2017 for Bang Gang (A Modern Love Story) [+see also:
film review
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interview: Eva Husson
film profile], also giving excellent performances in Nocturama [+see also:
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interview: Bertrand Bonello
film profile], We Need Your Vote [+see also:
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film profile] and Escape from Raqqa [+see also:
film review
trailer
film profile]).

The story, written by Naël Marandin in conjunction with Marion Doussot (who previously partnered up with the filmmaker on She Walks) and Marion Desseigne-Ravel, revolves around 25-year-old Constance, the daughter of a cattle farmer. With her boyfriend Bruno, she lives and works on her father Bernard’s farm. But they are crippled by debt and the bank is threatening to seize the business. Their only hope is to secure the support of a regional farm-financing agency. They ask for help from Sylvain, an influential and charismatic public figure who sits on the organisation’s board of directors and oversees the local livestock market. He agrees to support their project; their fate is in his hands. When Sylvain tells Constance how much he wants her, can she turn him down?

Produced by Julien Rouch for Diligence Films, Beasts will be co-produced by France 3 Cinéma and K’ien Productions. Having been pre-purchased by France 3, Ciné+ and Tv5 Monde, the feature is also being backed by the CNC’s advance on receipts, the Bourgogne-Franche-Comté region, and the Cinécapital and Cinémage Soficas. Interestingly, in 2017, the project was selected for the third edition of La Sélection (run by the Gan Foundation for Film and the Groupe Ouest). The 32–day shoot will take place from 30 September-12 November in Brionnais (in the south of Bourgogne), with Noé Bach (Isadora’s Children [+see also:
film review
trailer
interview: Damien Manivel
film profile]) in charge of the cinematography. The French distribution will be handled by Ad Vitam and the international sales by Kinology.

Les Dévorants is the second feature to be produced by Diligence Films, following Moka [+see also:
film review
trailer
film profile] by Frédéric Mermoud (unveiled on Locarno’s Piazza Grande in 2016).

(Translated from French)