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315 Millbank Ave. Greenwich, CT 06830 203-869-2600 GreenwichInfiniti.com Letter from the Focus on French Cinema Team BIENVENUE... Welcome to Focus on French Cinema 2017, the annual festival of French-language film from around the world presented by the Alliance Française of Greenwich. Established in 2005, Focus on French Cinema is a wide-ranging film festival embracing the best of cinema from France, Switzerland, Canada, Belgium, Lebanon, French speaking African countries and beyond. Now in its 13th year, Focus on French Cinema returns to Connecticut and Manhattan for a week long festival from March 27 to April 2. The lineup of over 20 films includes multiple César winners and an award-winning selection of short films as well as a very special Tribute to the Cinema of Québec co-organized with the Montréal festival CINEMANIA. Our list of distinguished partners and venues continues to expand: in addition to CINEMANIA and long term partner Festival du film francophone d’Angoulême (co-directed by guest Dominique Besnehard), we are honored once again to boast screenings at the Avon Theater in Stamford, CT; New York Opening Night at FIAF; for the first time, at the Lycée Francais de New York; and for the second year in a row, a screening at the United Nations in partnership with the International Organization of La Francophonie. This year Focus on French Cinema honors the illustrious career of legendary filmmaker Claude Lelouch, who will be on hand for the U.S. Premiere of the 50th anniversary restoration of his masterpiece A Man and a Woman (Un homme et une femme). Focus on French Cinema will welcome Lelouch for the entire festival week. From the Greenwich Opening Night festivities to the Tribute to Québec; with round-table discussions as well as multiple Q & A’s, Focus on French Cinema continues to be a platform for discussion, debate and discovery of the French- speaking world. We hope that you will again be challenged, enchanted and entertained with the selection this year. Thank you for your support, the continued support of our sponsors and partners and the incredible team that is Focus on French Cinema. Et maintenant, que le spectacle commence!

Team Focus on French Cinema

EXECUTIVE COMMITTEE Renée Amory Ketcham - Chair, President, Alliance Française of Greenwich Gail Covney Marie-José Hunter Anne Kern Fereshteh Priou Laurence Teinturier

SELECTION COMMITTEE Anne Kern – Director of Programming Antoine Bancharel Mary Hardy Renée Amory Ketcham

Guilhem Caillard – Tribute to Quebec

Statement from the Director of Programming On behalf of the Selection Committee for the 13th edition of Focus on French Cinema, we welcome you, our audience. You are the reason the festival exists, and you are always with us, in our minds and hearts, as we preview scores of films each year from throughout the French-speaking world. It has been my privilege to serve as Director of Programming for you over these past three years. To refer to myself in the first person singular is misleading, however, since our Selection Committee functions so seamlessly as a team. I would like to honor the crucial contributions of Selection Committee members Mary Hardy, Renee Ketcham and Antoine Bancharel, as well as Festival and Guest Coordinators Clément Letailleur and Jeanne Billaud and Programming Intern Apolline Bas. Without any one of them, we could not have brought you this rich, diverse slate of films and guests. Indeed, diverse is the perfect word to sum up this year’s selection: on display here is a wide diversity of genres, forms, and above all, a diversity of voices, cultures, and points of view. And while diversity in a political context may have been repurposed to the point that it risks losing all definition, we see the term regain its full force in these films, which herald the vitality and continued relevance of French-language cinema in the face of global commercial pressures. They demonstrate over and again that we can bring the world closer through art, and be delighted and entertained along the way. We begin by celebrating the sweep of history, from Bertrand Tavernier’s My Journey Through French Cinema to our spotlight on the career of legendary director and honored guest Claude Lelouch, including the 50th anniversary restoration of his classic A Man and a Woman; his thoroughly 21st century take on romance in Un + Une; and an exclusive peek at guest Philippe Azoulay’s stunningly intimate portrait of Lelouch in Shoot to Live. We discover Quebec’s burgeoning film culture through six feature films, six shorts, a special round table discussion and an entire delegation of brilliant young Quebec talent (a special note of thanks to CINEMANIA Guest Programmer Guilhem Caillard for his assistance with guests and for curating the Quebec shorts in particular). We highlight the diversity of cinematic form through a bevy of shorts and several of the year’s standout documentaries, including guest Olivier Babinet’s Swagger, which depicts an exuberant group of teenagers from an underserved suburb of Paris; Julie Bertuccelli’s Latest News from the Cosmos, in which a severely autistic woman thought to be illiterate is discovered to be a brilliant literary artist; and Mahamat-Saleh Haroun’s Hissein Habré, which traces the devastating consequences of a charismatic and cruel leader on the central African country of Chad, including the survivors whose spirits remain resolutely unbroken. Finally, we offer a diversity of perspectives on the forces shaping our world now, including Raja Amari’s Foreign Body, produced by guest Dominique Besnehard, which follows the story of a refugee from the Tunisian revolution as she resettles in France; guest Marie-Castille Mention-Schaar’s Heaven Will Wait, offering a surprising take on the passage of young people to jihadism; and Lucien Jean-Baptiste’s comedy He Even Has Your Eyes starring guest Aïssa Maïga, where we are reminded that ultimately love is love, no matter one’s skin color or culture. - Anne Kern

Tribute to Quebec It was a year ago already, as I discovered Focus on French Cinema, that the idea of a Tribute to Quebec began to take form. Much has been accomplished since then and, today, this marks the first time that an entire section of the festival’s program will be dedicated to Quebec cinema. I have had the great pleasure of working closely with the FFC Selec- tion Committee to recommend films and guests and to help them put this Tribute together. I would like to thank the entire FFC team for their invitation and for hosting this crucial, new initiative. I use the word “crucial” because Quebec cinema lacks exposure in the US. This unique opportunity offered by the FFC this year thus represents a rare occasion for Connecticut and New York filmgoers to discover the cultural wealth of today’s Quebec film production. To showcase this effervescence, we have chosen six feature films and six shorts among those that have left their mark over the past year. Of course, it was impossible to leave Xavier Dolan behind. At 27, he has already directed seven feature films and has become one of the most acclaimed voices among Quebec’s new generation of filmmakers. It’s Only the End of the World, Grand Prize at Cannes, will open the FFC. This Tribute is the occasion to welcome to Greenwich young talents from Montreal. Director Anne Émond will be presenting Nelly, which brings to the big screen for the first time the life of Quebec novelist Nelly Arcan, embodied with superb aplomb by up-and-coming star Mylène Mackay who is also making the trip to Connecticut. Yan England will be presenting 1:54, an important film about bullying. His main actor, Antoine Olivier Pilon (the unforgettable Steve in Dolan’s Mommy), will also be present at FFC. Actor Émile Schneider will represent Kiss Me Like a Lover and A Pact Among Angels. Starring in both films, Émile goes from historical melodrama to family drama with great ease, impressing audiences with a nuanced and charismatic sensitivity. And, cherry on the pie, Richard Angers, director of A Pact Among Angels, will be joining us to present his first feature film! The short film scene is also vibrantly innovative in Quebec, so we were keen on showcasing some of its representatives. Best known for playing a high school student in popular Quebec television series 30 vies, young thespian Théodore Pellerin makes a sensational splash in two short films presented this year at FFC, Sigismond Imageless and By the Pool. A promising revelation, Théodore offers supercharged, disarming performances full of a rare emotional intelligence. Filmmaker François Jaros will accompany his film Oh What a Wonderful Feeling, which premiered at the 2016 Critics Week in Cannes. Rounding out the Tribute to Quebec program are feature comedy Bad Seeds (winner of two prizes in Angoulême) and short films Plain and Simple, My Last Summer and Nonna. Truly, the FFC can take pride in such a formidable selection. As for myself, I invite you to join me on the other side of the border, in Montreal, for the 23rd edition of CINEMANIA (November 2-12). Until then, enjoy the FFC and long live Quebec cinema!

Guilhem Caillard Managing Director, CINEMANIA Film Festival (Quebec) Guest programmer in charge of the Tribute to Quebec 13th Annual FFC Round Table The Present and Future of French Cinema Saturday, April 1 - 11:15am Bow Tie Criterion Cinemas • Room 1 Free Admission + Complimentary Lunch FFC 2017 guests gather to discuss the state of contemporary French cinema with one another and the audience. What are the prevalent trends they are seeing in terms of production, subjects, scale, form, and box office? How are new modes of financing and distribution transforming the septième art, as cinema has long been known in the French-speaking world? How do they see the medium of cinema and its role in responding to world events? Join our guests for a unique opportunity to hear from inside the heart of French-language cinema today. Moderated by Director of Programming Anne Kern. (60 min.)

Tribute to Quebec Quebec Roundtable Meet With Our Quebec Guests! Sunday, April 2 - 12pm Bow Tie Criterion Cinemas • Room 1 Free Admission + Complimentary Lunch Directors Richard Angers (A Pact Among Angels), Anne Émond (Nelly), François Jaros (Oh What a Wonder- ful Feeling), Yan England (1:54), and actors Mylène Mackay (Nelly, Kiss Me Like a Lover), Théodore Pellerin (Sigismond Imageless, By the Pool) and Émile Schneider (Kiss Me Like a Lover, A Pact Among Angels) will discuss their recent works. Dominique Besnehard, a friend of Quebec cinema who participated in many French-Canadian coproductions, will take part in the roundtable. This intimate encounter will be moderated by FFC Director of Programming Anne Kern and CINEMANIA Managing Director Guilhem Caillard. (60 min.)

Thank you to our partner who supported the Tribute to Quebec!

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THE SCHOOL OF FILM & MEDIA STUDIES AT PURCHASE COLLEGE CONGRATULATES THE ALLIANCE FRANÇAISE OF GREENWICH ON ANOTHER SUCCESSFUL YEAR FOR THE FOCUS ON FRENCH CINEMA!

We celebrate our 1 year partnership with Alliance Française and this annual celebration of film and cultural exchange.

FRIENDS AND ALUMNI OF FILM AND MEDIA STUDIES The School of Film and Media Studies at Purchase College is dedicated to enriching the college’s strong legacy in film, integrated media studies, and media arts. With programs like “Great Films and Great Directors,” selective screenings and showcases, campus events with filmmakers, writers, and directors, and student exhibitions, the School of Film and Media Studies is building unity and support for film on campus and throughout the community. www.purchase.edu

OPEN THINK WIDE OPEN THINK WIDE OPEN

fcc16 ad.indd 1 2/17/16 4:24 PM Proudly Presents the 13th Edition of Focus on French Cinema

The Alliance Française of Greenwich, founded in 1911, is a member supported non-profit organization offering programs on French culture as well as French language classes and private tutoring for adults and children.

For more information of our Language and Cultural Programs visit www.afgreenwich.org Or call 203.629.1340 272 Bedford Street Stamford, CT 06901 Box Office: 203-967-3660 www.avontheatre.org Un Plus Une Un plus une Monday, March 27 - 7:30pm Avon Theater, Stamford, CT Tuesday, March 28 - 4pm French Institute Alliance Française, New York

GENRE Comedy, Romance DIRECTOR Claude Lelouch SCREENPLAY Claude Lelouch, Valérie Perrin CAST Jean Dujardin, Elsa Zylberstein, Christophe Lambert, Alice Pol DISTRIBUTOR Les Films 13 LENGTH 113 min COUNTRY France RELEASE CT Premiere

GUESTS Claude Lelouch

SPONSORED BY SYNOPSIS Antoine resembles one of the heroes in the films whose scores he composes. He’s charming, successful, and goes through life with humor and lightheartedness. When he travels to India to work on an original version of Romeo and Juliet, he encounters Anna, a woman with whom he has nothing in common, but whom he finds devastat- ingly attractive. Together, they’ll live an incredible adventure. Starring Academy Award winner Jean how important they are to a movie, because it’s Dujardin and directed by the legendary Claude their worlds that allow us to depict everything. Lelouch, Un plus une is an instant film classic. I’ve wanted to work with Jean Dujardin for a long time. After making movies for over 50 years, FOCUS ON Origin of the Story having worked with France’s most talented actors, “This film stems from a beautiful mix of circum- I had to work with him. With Jean and Elsa in stances. When I was working on another project, mind, I wrote the script very quickly. They directed I received a call from Elsa Zylberstein and Jean my writing process and enjoyed it because I Dujardin, simply to let me know that they wanted believe that these two, each in their very own way, to work with me. Then, my encounter with India represent new trends in contemporary cinema. So was a revelation. Our mutual desire and conversa- it is the first time I’ve made a film on an ‘emotional tions allowed me to tell the kind of love story that request’! “ I like. Jean and Elsa were the driving force. They - Claude Lelouch had the potential of being a really unexpected couple. They are so different that they are bound to form an ideal couple! I love actors, and I know

16 A Man and a Woman Un homme et une femme

Preceded by a special 20-min. excerpt of Philippe Azoulay’s forthcoming Shoot to Live (Tourner pour vivre) Tuesday, March 28 - 7:30pm French Institute Alliance Française, New York Saturday, April 1 - 3:15pm Bow Tie Cinemas, Greenwich, CT

GENRE Romance, Drama DIRECTOR Claude Lelouch CAST Anouk Aimée, Jean-Louis Trintignant, Valérie Lagrange DISTRIBUTOR Les Films 13 LENGTH 105 min COUNTRY France RELEASE North American Premiere of the SPONSORED BY Newly Restored 50th-Anniversary Edition

GUESTS Claude Lelouch & Philippe Azoulay

SYNOPSIS REVIEWS Claude Lelouch’s timeless love story, A Man and “This frankly romantic French drama is a beautiful a Woman, tells the tale of two people (Oscar- and breathtaking exposition of visual imagery nominated Anouk Aimée and Jean-Louis intended to excite the emotions.” Trintignant) who meet by accident on a Sunday -The New York Times evening at their children’s boarding school. Slowly they reveal themselves to each other, discovering SELECT AWARDS & NOMINATIONS that each has lost a spouse, but each revelation is Academy Awards (1967) shrouded in misperception. This classic film won Best Foreign Film, Best Original Screenplay the Palme d’or in 1966 and two Academy Awards Winner in 1967, for Best Foreign-Language Film and Nominations: Best Actress in a Leading Role, Best Original Screenplay, with two additional Best Director nominations: Best Actress in a Leading Role Cannes International Film Festival (1966) (Anouk Aimée) and Best Director. We are honored Palme d’Or to celebrate this 50th Anniversary with Claude BAFTA Awards (1968) Lelouch. Best Foreign Actress

17 Heaven Will Wait Le Ciel attendra Wednesday, March 29 - 6pm Lycée Français de New York, New York Friday, March 31 - 11am Schools only • Bow Tie Cinemas, Greenwich, CT Saturday, April 1 - 12:30pm Bow Tie Cinemas, Greenwich, CT

GENRE Drama DIRECTOR Marie-Castille Mention-Schaar SCREENPLAY Marie-Castille Mention-Schaar CAST Noémie Merlant, Naomi Amarger, Clotilde Courau, Sandrine Bonnaire, Zinedine Soualem, Ariane Ascaride, Yvan Attal DISTRIBUTOR Gaumont LENGTH 100 min COUNTRY France SPONSORED BY U.S. RELEASE U.S. Premiere

GUEST Marie-Castille Mention-Schaar FOCUS ON Origin of the Project “I was just coming out of my last film (Les Héritiers SYNOPSIS - FFC 2015) when I started reading multiple articles Sixteen-year-old Mélanie lives with her mother. She about parents looking for their daughters who had loves school, her friends, playing the cello…and left to go to Syria. At that time, I was very involved she wants to change the world. But when Mélanie and interested by the whole process of religious falls in love with a “prince” on the Internet, her conversion. I started to read about the subject and world turns upside down. Sonia is seventeen years began to have a lot of questions. At this point, in old and considers doing something irrevocable my mind it wasn’t a movie yet, but an abundance to guarantee her family a place in paradise. These of questions that I had as a mother of a young girl. teenage girls could be called Anaïs, Manon, or Leila; How all this could happen? How could a fifteen, each is heading down a seemingly inexorable path sixteen, seventeen year old go from watching to indoctrination. Can they ever return? Disney Channel to leaving for Syria? To me it was a SELECT AWARDS & NOMINATIONS mystery. So I started looking into it and talking to César Awards journalists and people involved in the matter. Every- Nomination: Most Promising Actress one I talked to lead me to this woman who is in the film, named Dounia Bouzar. Since 2016, she has Toronto International Film Festival began working with young girls and families that Contemporary World Cinema were confronted with this problem. I explained to Locarno International Film Festival her that I wanted to try to understand better before Avant-Premiere making a movie and asked if I could follow every- Angoulême Film Festival thing that she did and be involved in all aspects for Avant-Premiere a few months. After that experience I CINEMANIA Film Festival began writing the script.” Official Selection – Marie-Castille Mention-Schaar 18 1:54 1:54 Tribute to Quebec Thursday, March 30 - 6:30pm United Nations, New York • By Invitation Only Sunday, April 2 - 7:30pm Bow Tie Cinemas, Greenwich, CT

GENRE Drama DIRECTOR Yan England SCREENPLAY Yan England CAST Antoine Olivier Pilon, Sophie Nélisse, Lou-Pascal Tremblay DISTRIBUTOR TF1 International LENGTH 106 min COUNTRY Canada (Québec) U.S. RELEASE East Coast Premiere

GUESTS Yan England & Antoine Olivier Pilon SPONSORED BY SYNOPSIS High school science geek Tim goes out of his way to avoid provoking the local bullies at his school. But when his only friend and secret crush Francis encounters tragedy, Tim decides to take revenge. FOCUS ON Antoine Olivier Pilon He joins the track team, gunning for the head “Antoine Olivier Pilon has a naturally defensive bully in the 800-meter dash—but all does not go presence. Previously the breakout from Xavier as planned. Dolan’s caustic melodrama Mommy, his body language is less reactionary than compensatory. SELECT AWARDS & NOMINATIONS When he responds, it’s like the pull of a slingshot, a Festival du film francophone d’Angoulême persistent clenching that the audience worries will Best Actor Award (Antoine Olivier Pilon) never unleash. From the first moment he’s seen on Magelis Prize screen in Yan England’s debut, 1:54, he’s fighting at Namur Francophone Film Festival unseen expectations of the universe.” Junior Jury Prize – Michael Snydel , Film Stage Rome Independent Film Festival Special Mention REVIEWS “1:54’s appeal doesn’t stop at the schoolyard (…) an efficient, moving piece about an important issue” - Montréal Gazette “This film is the perfect combination of heart- breaking coming-of-age story and competitive- sports feature.” -Toronto International Film Festival 19 My Journey Through French Cinema Voyage à travers le cinéma Français Friday, March 31 - 10:45am Bow Tie Cinemas, Greenwich, CT Saturday, April 1 - 2:30pm Bow Tie Cinemas, Greenwich, CT

GENRE Documentary DIRECTOR Bertrand Tavernier DISTRIBUTOR Cohen Media Group LENGTH 190 min (15 min intermission) COUNTRY France RELEASE CT Premiere

SYNOPSIS Bertrand Tavernier’s personal journey through SPONSORED BY French cinema, from films he enjoyed as a boy to his own early career, told through portraits of key creative figures such as Renoir, Becker, Vigo, Truffaut, and many more. Inspired by Martin Scorsese’s Personal Journey through American Movies, Tavernier explores Gallic cinema from the 1930’s through the PRESENTER Larry Kardish early 1970’s in this ambitious and fascinating Over 44 years Laurence Kardish organized over documentary. As Tavernier would say, “Memory one thousand moving-image exhibitions covering warms us: this film is a bit of coal for winter nights.” the whole history and culture of cinema at New York’s The Museum of Modern Art where he was SELECT AWARDS & NOMINATIONS Senior Curator of Film. In 1988 Kardish curated the Lumière Awards first retrospective in the U.S. of Bertrand Tavernier Best Documentary when the artist was in early mid-career. Kardish César Awards also organized retrospectives of other French Nomination: Best Documentary filmmakers and actors such as Claude Chabrol, New York Film Festival Louis Malle, Isabelle Huppert, Agnès Varda, to Official Selection name a few, and for Gaumont’s 100th Anniversary Cannes Classics he developed a major film series that travelled Official Selection the U.S.

REVIEWS “Essential viewing for cinephiles and francophiles alike.” - The Hollywood Reporter “Outstanding and highly intelligent.” 20 - Martin Scorsese The Dancer La Danseuse Friday, March 31 - 3:10pm Bow Tie Cinemas, Greenwich, CT Sunday, April 2 - 1:25pm Bow Tie Cinemas, Greenwich, CT

GENRE Drama DIRECTOR Stephanie Di Giusto SCREENPLAY Stephanie Di Giusto CAST Soko, Lily-Rose Depp, Gaspard Ulliel, Mélanie Thierry, François Damiens, Denis Ménochet DISTRIBUTOR Wild Bunch LENGTH 108 min COUNTRY France RELEASE CT Premiere

SYNOPSIS SPONSORED BY Loïe Fuller was born in the American West. Nothing in her background prepared this robust cowgirl to become the toast of the Parisian cabarets of La Belle Epoque, or to dance on the stage of the Paris Opera. Then one day she invents the “Serpentine Dance.” Hidden by yards of floating fabric, her arms extended by two wooden poles as she moves beneath the stage lights, Loïe becomes a flower, a butterfly, a flame—and each night the crowds call out for more. This awkward woman lacking FOCUS ON Origin of the Story apparent charm has found her place in the world: “It all began with a black and white photograph she will be “The Dancer,” even though her physical of a dancer hidden in swirling veils and floating efforts may break her back, and the stage lights above ground with a caption at the bottom: “Loïe may blind her. Fuller: Icon of the Belle Epoque.” I was curious about the woman behind the long swaths of SELECT AWARDS fabric, and her story blew me away. I loved the fact César Awards that she became famous by concealing herself, Best Costumes her trailblazing nature. With her Serpentine Dance, Nominations: Best First Film; Best Actress (Soko); Loïe Fuller literally revolutionized the stage arts at Best Supporting Actress (Mélanie Thierry); the end of the 19th century. Yet no one, or almost Best Newcomer Actress (Lily-Rose Depp); no one, remembers her. “ Best Set Design - Stephanie Di Giusto

21 It’s Only the End of the World Juste la fin du monde Greenwich Opening Night Tribute to Quebec Friday, March 31 - 7:45pm Bow Tie Cinemas, Greenwich, CT

GENRE Drama DIRECTOR Xavier Dolan SCREENPLAY Xavier Dolan CAST Gaspard Ulliel, Nathalie Baye, Léa Seydoux, Vincent Cassel, Marion Cotillard DISTRIBUTOR Seville International LENGTH 95 min COUNTRIES Canada (Québec), France US RELEASE N.Y. Area Premiere

GUEST Théodore Pellerin SPONSORED BY

SYNOPSIS After a twelve-year absence, a playwright returns SELECT AWARDS & NOMINATIONS to his hometown to announce to his family his Cannes International Film Festival impending death. As resentment rewrites the Grand Prize of the Jury, Prize of the Ecumenical course of the afternoon, fits and feuds fueled Jury by loneliness and doubt begin to unfold. César Awards Meanwhile, all attempts at empathy are sabotaged Best Director, Best Actor (Gaspard Ulliel), Best by the family’s incapacity to listen and love. The Editing claustrophobia of family is well-wrought in this Nominations: Best Foreign Film, Best Supporting latest, highly stylized drama by Québécois director Actress (Nathalie Baye), Best Supporting Actor Xavier Dolan. (Vincent Cassel) Canadian Screen Awards Best Motion Picture, Best Achievement in Direction, Best Supporting Actor (Vincent Cassel), Best Achievement in Cinematography Nominations: , Best Adapted Screenplay, Performance by an Actress in a Supporting Role (Nathalie Baye), Achievement in Make-Up, Achievement in Overall Sound, Achievement in Sound Editing

22 Swagger Swagger Saturday, April 1 - 9:20am Bow Tie Cinemas, Greenwich, CT

GENRE Documentary DIRECTOR Olivier Babinet DISTRIBUTOR Lucky You LENGTH 84 min COUNTRY France RELEASE U.S. Premiere

GUEST Olivier Babinet

SYNOPSIS Swagger swoops into the astonishing minds of eleven teenagers growing up in one of the most underprivileged housing projects in France, located in Aulnay-sous-Bois. The film shows us the world through an amalgam of their singular SPONSORED BY and unexpected gazes, their funny and incisive thoughts. Swagger gives life to the words and dreams of these young people. Despite lives of economic hardship, these teens are filled with FOCUS ON Swagger (verb) ambition, promise, joy—and swagger. “When I arrived in Aulnay, the kids there kept using the word ‘swag’. Then, a year later, when I SELECT AWARDS & NOMINATIONS asked Régis to tell me about ‘swag’, he looked at ACID Cannes 2016 me condescendingly: “‘Swag’ is out… Now we say Official Selection ‘swagance’, ‘swagologist’…” I felt a little sheepish César Awards so I looked up the origin of the word. I read that Nomination: Best Documentary it comes from ‘swagger’, the first written record of Namur Francophone Film Festival which can be found in Shakespeare’s A Midsummer Official Selection Night’s Dream! ‘What hempen homespuns have we swaggering here so near the cradle of the fairy Lumière Awards queen?’ In the 50s, it was used to talk about Sinatra: Nomination: Best Documentary it referred to a bad boy’s classiness. The word re-emerged in Black American ghettos in the 90s SELECT FILMOGRAPHY Oliver Babinet - Director before being used in Aulnay. It has regularly come Swagger - 2016 back in fashion since the 16th century. I thought Robert Mitchum Is Dead - 2010 it was a good title for my film because my main C’est plutôt genre Johnny Walker - 2008 (Short) characters have this stylish way of being in the C’était le chien d’Eddy - 2003 (Short) world. They all have an attitude and things they Le Bidule - 1999 (TV) want to defend: despite the hardships, the kids of Aulnay keep their heads up high. Because they have ‘swag’. “ – Olivier Babinet

23 Animated Shorts La Chouette entre veille et sommeil Saturday, April 1 - 10:45am Bow Tie Cinemas, Greenwich, CT Sunday, April 2 - 12:15pm Bow Tie Cinemas, Greenwich, CT

GENRE Animation DISTRIBUTOR Cinéma Public Films COUNTRIES France, Belgium US RELEASE North American Premiere

SUITABLE FOR ALL AGES AND NON-FRENCH SPEAKERS Compte les moutons DIRECTOR Fritz Standaert SCREENPLAY Arnaud Demuynck SPONSORED BY RUNNING TIME 7 min

Compte les moutons A little boy cannot fall asleep. Un petit garçon n’arrive pas à s’endormir. Sur les conseils de son papa, il se met à compter les moutons pour trouver le sommeil… jusqu’à ce que les animaux apparaissent près de lui.

Fiche technique Réalisateur : Frits Standaert – Année : 2015 Durée : 06'50" – Couleur – Voix françaises Crédits His father advises to count Réalisation, montage : Frits Standaert Prix du public Scénario : Arnaud Demuynck (adapté du livre Festival Plein la bobine éponyme de Mireille d’Allancé) La Bourboule, France (2015) Voix : Lily Demuynck Deydier, Cédric Eeckhout, 1er Prix des écoles Christian Léonard, Laurence Deydier Festival européen du film court Musique : Simon Fache Brest, France (2015) Animation : Koen De Koninck Meilleur film court pour enfants Montage son : Christian Cartier Festival International d’animation Mixage : Nils Fauth Ottawa, Canada (2015)

Prix du public au PLAY Festival du film pour l’enfance sheeps… until the animals Lisbonne, Portugal (2016) start appearing before him. Une autre paire de manche La Soupe au caillou DIRECTOR Samuel Guénolé DIRECTOR Clémentine Robach SCREENPLAY Samuel Guénolé SCREENPLAY Clémentine Robach RUNNING TIME 6 min RUNNING TIME 7 min

Une autre paire de manches Arthur has to get dressed La Soupe au caillou These inhabitants of a small Les habitants d’une petite ville n’ont pas grand-chose à manger et passent leur temps devant la télé. Heureuse- Arthur est contraint de s’habiller le matin pour aller à ment qu’une coupure de courant va les forcer à sortir de l’école. Et vite ! Chaque étape est une épreuve de plus chez eux pour se rencontrer ! à laquelle il tente d’échapper pour des préoccupations plus amusantes. Et son imagination est sans limite ! Fiche technique Fiche technique Réalisatrice : Clémentine Robach – Année : 2015 Réalisateur : Samuel Guénolé – Année : 2015 Durée : 07'07" – Couleur – Voix françaises Durée : 06'00" – Couleur – Voix françaises every morning to go to school.Crédits Crédits Réalisation, scénario, image : Clémentine Robach town don’t have much to Réalisation, scénario, animation : Samuel Guénolé Voix : Thierry Decoster, N’Diouga Seck, Roxane Voix : Raphaëlle Bruneau, Roman Guénolé Wilusz Sorrentino, Hubert Delgrange, Massi Lorusso, Natacha Musique : Falter Bramnk Cadart, Clémentine Delval, Frank Lambert, Nunzia Montage image : Corine Bachy Savoia, Emmanuel Roger, Hélène Pauwels, Kelly Howard, Montage son : Falter Bramnk Viktor, Arnaud Demuynck, Donna Wilson, Luigi Salis, Nelly Monou, Pascal Tankam, Gonzalo Ortiz-Rouzé Mixage : Nils Fauth Musique : Falter Bramnk Bruitages : Marie-Jeanne Wyckmans Animation : Clémentine Robach, Anaïs Sorrentino Prix du Jury International Montage image : Corine Bachy Festival Ale Kino! Poznan, Pologne (2015) Every step is a struggle andMontage son : Falter Bramnkhis Mixage : Nils Fauth Prix Eco Bambins eat and spend all their time Festival International du film d’environnement Paris, France (2016) imagination knows no bond! watching TV. Fortunately, a power outage will force them to get out, meet, La Moufle and prepare a special soup… DIRECTOR Clémentine Robach SCREENPLAY Arnaud Demuynck La Galette court toujours RUNNING TIME 8 min DIRECTOR Pascale Hecquet

La Moufle In the winter, Lily and her SCREENPLAY Arnaud Demuynck En plein hiver, Lily et son grand-père installent un ni- choir pour protéger les oiseaux. En voyant un écureuil frigorifié, la petite fille dépose sa moufle sur le sol. Qui sait quels animaux viendront s’y abriter ?

Fiche technique Réalisatrice : Clémentine Robach – Année : 2014 Durée : 08'10" – Couleur – Sans dialogues Crédits grandpa install a bird house. RUNNING TIME 8 min Réalisation, image : Clémentine Robach Scénario : Arnaud Demuynck Voix : Lily Demuynck Deydier, Jacqueline et Guy Deschamps Musique : Falter Bramnk

Animation : Clémentine Robach, Nicolas Liguori, Prix du Jury pour un Spécial TV Élise Catros Festival International du film d’animation Montage image : Nicolas Liguori, Corine Bachy Annecy, France (2015) Montage son : Falter Bramnk Prix du Meilleur réalisateur Festival Gold Panda Awards for Animation To help a squirrel in distress, Chengdu, Chine (2015) La Galette A yummy cookie court toujours Une galette appétissante s’enfuit dans la forêt pour ne pas être mangée par le lapin et ses amis. Elle va devoir she gives him her glove. Whoruser pour échapper au renard qui rôde dans les bois.

Fiche technique Réalisateur : Pascale Hecquet – Année : 2015 Durée : 07'45" – Couleur – Voix françaises Crédits runs away… Réalisation, animation, montage : Pascale Hecquet Scénario : Arnaud Demuynck Musique : Alexandre Brouillard, Jessy Blondeel Voix : Lily Demuynck Deydier, Annick Lambert, knows which other animalsAlexandre Gruau, Aleksandra Suchudola, Amandine Harlay, SolanBurnay, Anastasia Bochenkova, Gaëlle Cheno, Eléa Wierinck, Arnaud Demuynck Bruitages : Marie-Jeanne Wyckmans – Montage son : Christian Cartier 24 will use it for shelter? Mixage : Nils Fauth My Life as a Zucchini Ma vie de Courgette Saturday, April 1 - 12:30pm Bow Tie Cinemas, Greenwich, CT Sunday, April 2 - 10am Bow Tie Cinemas, Greenwich, CT

GENRE Animation DIRECTOR Claude Barras SCREENPLAY Céline Sciamma, Germano Zulio, Claude Barras, Morgan Navarro DISTRIBUTOR GKids LENGTH 66 min COUNTRY Switzerland, France

SUITABLE FOR ALL AGES

SYNOPSIS After his mother’s sudden death, Zucchini is befriended by a police officer, Raymond, who accompanies him to his new foster home, filled with other orphans his age. At first he struggles to SPONSORED BY find his place in this at-times strange and hostile environment. But with Raymond’s help and his newfound friends, Zucchini eventually learns to trust and love, as he searches for a family of his own. From its debut in the Director’s Fortnight at SELECT AWARDS & NOMINATIONS Cannes to winning audience awards at festivals Academy Awards around the world, this accomplished debut feature Nomination: Best Animated Feature Film from director Claude Barras, based on a script Golden Globes from acclaimed writer/director Céline Sciamma Nomination: Best Motion Picture–Animated (Girlhood, Tomboy), has been nominated for both Cannes International Film Festival Directors an Academy Award and Golden Globe Award for Fortnight Best Animated Feature. Brought to life through Nominations: SACD Prize, Art Cinema Award, memorably-designed characters and expressive SACD Special Mention, Illy Prize, Europa Cinema stop-motion animation, the story soars with Label laughter, sorrow, and joy, and stands as a testament to the resilience of the human heart. Lumière Awards Best Screenplay, Best Animated Feature REVIEWS Annecy International Animated Film Festival “Nothing short of a miracle” Best Animated Feature, Audience Award -The Hollywood Reporter Angoulême Francophone Film Festival Valois De Diamant European Film Awards Best European Animated Feature Film

25 Bad Seeds Les Mauvaises herbes Tribute to Quebec Saturday, April 1 - 12:45pm Bow Tie Cinemas, Greenwich, CT Sunday, April 2 - 4:10pm Bow Tie Cinemas, Greenwich, CT

GENRE Comedy DIRECTOR Louis Bélanger SCREENPLAY Louis Bélanger, Alexis Martin CAST Alexis Martin, Gilles Renaud, Emmanuelle Lussier-Martinez, Luc Picard DISTRIBUTOR Seville International LENGTH 108 min COUNTRY Canada (Québec) RELEASE East Coast Premiere

SYNOPSIS Jacques is an actor who runs away to the country- SPONSORED BY side to evade his gambling debts and the lowlifes who are determined to collect. He meets Simon, a tough and wily farmer who corners him in an unusual business relationship. Together they cultivate one of the last remaining cash crops in this rural Québecois community… After a rocky start, the men help each other, and their marijuana REVIEWS plants begin to thrive. Soon another unsuspecting “Top cast and expert direction. This comedy hits figure stumbles into their lives: a jagged-edged some timely buttons and takes a number of satis- young woman who discovers their activities and fying twists. A skillful mixture of humor, sentiment is eventually “persuaded” to join their merry band. and suspense.” By the time they reach the winter harvest, outside - The Hollywood Reporter forces threaten the delicate balance of their little “Funny, relevant, moving and playful. Bad Seeds venture. has the guts and craziness that many productions from Québec had lacked on the big screen in SELECT AWARDS & NOMINATIONS recent years.” Canadian Screen Awards - Cinoche Nominations: Best Motion Picture, Best Art Direction/Production Design, Best Editing, Best Sound Festival du film francophone d’Angoulême Best Screenplay Award

26 A Pact Among Angels Le Pacte des anges Tribute to Quebec Saturday, April 1 - 3:30pm Bow Tie Cinemas, Greenwich, CT Sunday, April 2 - 7:05pm Bow Tie Cinemas, Greenwich, CT

GENRE Drama, Thriller DIRECTOR Richard Angers CAST Emile Schneider, Marc Messier, Lenni-Kim Lalande DISTRIBUTOR Axia Films LENGTH 96 min COUNTRY Canada (Québec) RELEASE U.S. Premiere

GUESTS Richard Angers, Emile Schneider & Théodore Pellerin SPONSORED BY

SYNOPSIS Adrien (Marc Messier), a solitary, middle-aged man, finds himself in the wrong place at the wrong time and is kidnapped by two brothers age 14 (Lenni-Kim Lalande) and 18 (Emile Schneider) who have gotten themselves in big trouble. This starts planning his next hunting trip, is inspired by my the bizarre trio on a crazy journey that reveals each father and uncles—men close to the soil, born at person’s true character. Linked by a common destiny, a time when men weren’t very present for their these three fragile individuals must overcome their children and rarely showed their emotions. When prejudices and work together to survive. he finds himself in close quarters with the two boys, Adrien is confronted by parts of his own FOCUS ON Director’s Note buried past and the need to mourn his own son. “This film started as a desire to take two generations For the two younger characters, Cedric and that are out of touch and put them in close William, I drew heavily on my time working in a contact. Grounded in Québec’s majestic natural home for troubled youth. The two brothers have beauty, it’s a road movie that throws two young the combined characteristics of many of those I fugitives together with an old man, in a situation met— young people struggling for survival. The that leaves all of them tense, volatile, and exposed. younger brother is still in that space between To find characters that felt true, I went deep childhood and adolescence, while the older has into my own memories and personal experience. been forced by circumstances to grow up much Adrien, a labourer who spends most of his time too fast.” Richard Angers

27 Kiss Me Like a Lover Embrasse-moi comme tu m’aimes Tribute to Quebec Saturday, April 1 - 6:45pm Bow Tie Cinemas, Greenwich, CT

GENRE Comedy, Drama, Romance DIRECTOR André Forcier SCREENPLAY André Forcier CAST Emile Schneider, Juliette Gosselin, Céline Bonnier, Mylène Mackay DISTRIBUTOR Filmoption International LENGTH 95 min COUNTRY Canada (Québec) RELEASE U.S. Premiere

GUESTS Mylène Mackay, Emile Schneider & François Jaros SPONSORED BY SYNOPSIS 1940, the Second World War rages on in Europe. In Montreal, Pierre, 22, wants to enlist, but he must care for his twin sister, crippled since birth. This closeness between them awakens a sensuality in Berthe, who tries to seduce her brother. Pierre rebuffs her advances, but when he later falls in love with Marguerite, his best friend’s girl, he’s haunted by his sister’s fantasy. He tries to rid himself of it, but Berthe isn’t so easily dismissed.

FOCUS ON Two Possibilities for Love “My intention is to maintain the story’s central into becoming his sister’s de facto lover? Who is mystery right up until the very end. Pierre is destined to leave with Pierre in the end, Berthe deeply torn between his love for Marguerite and or Marguerite? In my opinion, there are two his unspeakable love for Berthe, intertwined with Berthes – the one just described, and the one that the fantasy Berthe. Like a relentless water torture, isn’t crippled. It is around this latter persona that drip by inevitable drip, will the fantasy Berthe’s Pierre’s fantasies dwell.” recurring presence ultimately seduce Pierre - André Forcier

28 The Odyssey L’Odyssée Saturday, April 1 - 7pm Bow Tie Cinemas, Greenwich, CT

GENRE Adventure, Biopic DIRECTOR Jérôme Salle CAST Lambert Wilson, Pierre Niney, Audrey Tautou DISTRIBUTOR Wild Bunch LENGTH 108 min COUNTRY France RELEASE CT Premiere

GUEST Jan Cousteau & David Kline

SYNOPSIS The legendary Captain Jacques-Yves Cousteau (Lambert Wilson), scientist, inventor, author and filmmaker, introduced a whole generation to the wonders of undersea exploration and brought SPONSORED BY the magic of the oceans to living rooms around the world… but at what cost? Living with his wife (Audrey Tautou) and sons in a beautiful house FOCUS ON Origin of the Film overlooking the Mediterranean Sea, Cousteau’s “I found myself talking about Cousteau at home life takes a dramatic turn with his co-invention and I realized that my son had no idea who I was of the autonomous diving suit that allows him talking about. He knew nothing, not the films, nor to breathe underwater. From this day on, he is the Calypso, nor the crew’s red hats! I was dumb- willing to sacrifice everything to conquer the seas. founded because for the people of my generation, Blinded by his unrelenting drive for success, he Captain Cousteau was like a sort of Jesus or at stands to lose all as his life spirals out of control least one of the most famous men in the world…I after the tragic death of his favorite son, Philippe began talking to people around me and started to (Pierre Niney). Suddenly a broken man begins to realize that he was completely falling into oblivion, overcome his grief and find the courage to especially for the younger generations. So I decided continue, as son Jean-Michel teaches him the to do some research on Cousteau to get an idea of most important lesson he will ever learn… what was being said about him. It turned out that Set against the backdrop of a cross-generational all this internet, book and documentary research I family drama, The Odyssey is an epic ode to was doing woke up a nostalgia of my childhood. exploration and a celebration of the human drive I also realized that apart from Wes Anderson ‘s film to seek out new realms of discovery. Aquatic Life, no film project had ever attempted to portray his exceptional destiny…I quickly uncovered SELECT AWARDS & NOMINATIONS a mystery: very little is known about Jacques César Awards Yves Cousteau. He mastered his communication Nomination: Best Sound; perfectly by filming himself with his crew but Cristal Awards without ever revealing anything about his own Nomination: Best Actress, Best Actor personal life.” - Jérôme Salle 29 Heal the Living Réparer les vivants Saturday, April 1 - 7:30pm Bow Tie Cinemas, Greenwich, CT

GENRE Drama DIRECTOR Katell Quillévéré CAST Tahar Rahim, Emmanuelle Seigner, Anne Dorval DISTRIBUTOR Cohen Media Group LENGTH 100 min COUNTRY France RELEASE CT Premiere

SYNOPSIS It all starts at daybreak, with three young surfers who master the roiling seas. On their way home a few hours later, a shattering accident occurs. Dependent on life support in a hospital in Le Havre, Simon may not be long for this world… Meanwhile, in Paris, a woman awaits the organ transplant that could give her a new lease on life. SPONSORED BY

FOCUS ON Director’s Statement “I discovered Maylis de Kerangal’s novel when it came out in January 2014. The book immediately captivated me. I couldn’t put it down and was totally shaken by the story it tells. The migration of one heart towards another, beyond the sheer dramatic power inherent in such a circumstance, SELECT AWARDS & NOMINATIONS opens up scientific, poetic and metaphysical César Awards perspectives. I’m fascinated by the opposing Nomination: Best Screen Adaptation elements here. On one hand, we have biomedicines CINEMANIA Film Festival modern and constantly evolving usages of the Official Selection human body, and on the other, we have the age- old questions: where does life end, what is death, REVIEWS being, the symbolic nature of our body parts…?” “An ambitious third film” - Katell Quillévéré - The Hollywood Reporter “Katell Quillévéré’s superb third feature is a wrenching medical drama that blends dazzling formal polish with rawest emotion.” - Variety

30 He Even Has Your Eyes Il a déjà tes yeux Saturday, April 1 - 9:15pm Bow Tie Cinemas, Greenwich, CT Sunday, April 2 - 1:15pm Bow Tie Cinemas, Greenwich, CT

GENRE Comedy DIRECTOR Lucien Jean-Baptiste SCREENPLAY Sébastien Mounier, Marie-Françoise Colombani, Lucien Jean-Baptiste CAST Aïssa Maïga, Lucien Jean-Baptiste, Vincent Elbaz, Zabou Breitman DISTRIBUTOR TF1 International LENGTH 95 min COUNTRY France

U.S. RELEASE U.S. Premiere SPONSORED BY

GUEST Aïssa Maïga

SYNOPSIS In their mid-thirties, Paul and Sali, a Parisian couple SELECT AWARDS & NOMINATIONS of Caribbean and West African origin, are happily Rendez-vous du cinéma francophone married and the proud new owners of a flower Official Selection; shop. The only cloud on their horizon is the long Angoulême Film Festival wait to adopt a child. Just when the couple has Official Selection given up hope, the adoption agency calls with Namur International Film Festival good news. The couple’s new baby boy is six Nomination: Views of the Present months old, his name is Benjamin, he’s beautiful, he has lovely blue eyes…and he’s white. Director SELECT FILMOGRAPHY Aïssa Maïga and star Lucien Jean-Baptiste explores what race The African Doctor (Bienvenue à Marly-Gomont) - and ethnicity mean when it comes to being a 2016 family; where love is concerned, do they mean anything at all? Anything for Alice (Prêt à tout) - 2014 Mood Indigo (L’Écume des jours) - 2013 Together It’s Too Much (Ensemble c’est trop) - FFC 2010 Sex, Gombo and Salted Butter (Sexe, Gombo et beurre salé) - FFC 2010 Bamako - 2006 Don’t Worry, I’m Fine (Je vais bien, ne t’en fais pas) - 2006 Russian Dolls (Les Poupées russes) - 2005 31 Max & Leon La Folle histoire de Max et Léon Saturday, April 1 - 9:45pm Bow Tie Cinemas, Greenwich, CT Sunday, April 2 - 9pm Bow Tie Cinemas, Greenwich, CT

GENRE Comedy DIRECTOR Jonathan Barre SCREENPLAY David Marsais, Grégoire Ludig CAST David Marsais, Grégoire Ludig, Nicolas Marie, Bernard Farcy, Florence Foresti DISTRIBUTOR StudioCanal LENGTH 98 min COUNTRY France RELEASE North American Premiere

GUEST Dominique Besnehard SPONSORED BY SYNOPSIS It’s 1939, Max and Leon are inseparable friends and both utterly immature and foolish. Thrown into the middle of WWII, their sole objective quickly becomes to desert their platoon and return to Spielberg model—to avoid the obvious violins their home town, their old simple life and their and tears! Our main concern was to avoid making wine-drinking ways. But the harder they attempt a film that was just a series of sketches, so we to escape, the more they find themselves drawn worked hard to avoid that. Right from our first into history in the making, all the way to the brainstorming sessions, we were focused on beaches of Normandy. making an historical film—deliberately choosing the Second World War so it would be a story that FOCUS ON Making an Historical Comedy runs over time with a real cinematic atmosphere— “I think the most important for us is rejecting and on making it as different as possible from our the easy path, avoiding that tendency to explain TV sketches which are more sliced up. I also made jokes, and point at the moment where one should sure, along with the crew, to create elaborate images laugh. We trust the audience’s intelligence, the with wider shots. This allowed us to set David and codes and references we all share. I also think that Grégoire in an historical context and to have them the three of us are all equally allergic to pathos. together all the time. If you pay attention, you will So even in a very serious or tragic moment, we see that they both figure in almost all the shots. always look for a spin—following the Pixar or Together, they create a comic entity.” - Jonathan Barre

32 Foreign Body Corps étranger Sunday, April 2 - 9:45am Bow Tie Cinemas, Greenwich, CT

GENRE Drama DIRECTOR Raja Amari SCREENPLAY Raja Amari CAST Hiam Abbass, Marc Brunet, Salim Kechiouche DISTRIBUTOR UDI Urban Distribution International, Mon Voisin Productions, Nomadis Images LENGTH 92 min COUNTRY France RELEASE N.Y. Area Premiere

GUEST Dominique Besnehard

SYNOPSIS SPONSORED BY In the turbulent aftermath of the Tunisian revolution, a young woman flees from her country to France after informing on her brother, an Islamist radical. Adrift in Paris as an undocumented immigrant, Samia finds that her struggles have only begun. Without friends or family, she has to SELECT FILMOGRAPHY Dominique Besnehard - make a life and a living in a foreign land. Seeking Producer help from a fellow countryman, Samia is pulled I Am a Soldier (Je suis un soldat) - 2015 back into the traditions and religious extremism Grounded (Au sol) - 2014 (short) she risked her life to escape. With courage and Brèves de comptoir - 2013 resolve, she finds employment, but as the story unfolds Samia becomes enmeshed in a web of Grand départ - 2012 sexual tension and intrigue. Longing for freedom Perfect Mothers - 2012 and peace of mind, Samia is determined to survive Maddened by his Absence (J’enrage de son absence) at all costs. - 2012 The Night Clerk (Avant l’aube) - FFC 2012 Queen to Play (Joueuse) - 2009 A Day at the Museum (Musée haut, musée bas) - FFC 2009

33 Short Films from Quebec!

Sunday, April 2 - 9:55am SPONSORED BY Bow Tie Cinemas, Greenwich, CT By the Pool Maîtres nageurs

GENRE Comedy - Drama DIRECTOR Karine Bélanger LENGTH 14 minutes 58 CAST Julianne Côté, Théodore Pellerin, Carla Turcotte SYNOPSIS During the heat wave, swimmers flock to a municipal pool. Rain or shine, as the days DISTRIBUTOR Travelling pass the place takes on a life of its own, and the GUEST Théodore Pellerin lifeguards, while immature at times, shoulder considerable responsibilities.

My Last Summer Mon dernier été

GENRE Drama DIRECTOR Paul-Claude Demers LENGTH 14 minutes 59 CAST Émilie Bierre, Antoine Marchand-Gagnon DISTRIBUTOR Travelling

SYNOPSIS During a heat wave in Montreal, 11-year-old Tom meets Edith, also 11. He soon discovers that Édith harbours a terrible secret. Tom his first love, which becomes the symbol of his last eventually loses his innocence at the dawning of summer.

Nonna

GENRE Documentary - Drama - Comedy DIRECTOR Pascal Plante LENGTH 10 minutes CAST Catherine Beauchemin, Micheline Chamberlant DISTRIBUTOR Spira SYNOPSIS A surprising visit at granny's...

34 Oh What a Wonderful Feeling

GENRE Drama - Thriller DIRECTOR François Jaros LENGTH 14 minutes CAST Karelle Tremblay, Frédérike Bédard, Patrice Beauchesne SYNOPSIS Stars, hide your fires; let not light see DISTRIBUTOR La Boîte à Fanny my black and deep desires. Nor any truck.

GUEST François Jaros

Sigismond Imageless Sigismond sans images

GENRE Comedy - Fantastic DIRECTOR Albéric Aurtenèche LENGTH 14 minutes CAST Théodore Pellerin, Marcel Sabourin, SYNOPSIS Sigismond is forced to undergo a Emmanuel Schwartz psych evaluation on account of his violent DISTRIBUTOR La Distributrice de films behaviour. He’s just turned 18 and pretends he was born with no image. Throughout the GUEST Théodore Pellerin questionnaire, he recounts the peculiar existence of a young man who has never seen himself.

Plain and Simple Tout simplement

GENRE Drama DIRECTOR Raphaël Ouellet LENGTH 12 minutes CAST Alderic Kenné, Marguerite d'Amour, Julie Roussel DISTRIBUTOR La Distributrice de films

SYNOPSIS "Plain and Simple" is a window that gives on the lives of 4 different characters that share an acute sense of loneliness while striving for a secret desire of belongingness.

35 Latest News from the Cosmos Dernières nouvelles du cosmos Sunday, April 2 - 12:30pm Bow Tie Cinemas, Greenwich, CT

GENRE Documentary DIRECTOR Julie Bertuccelli DISTRIBUTOR Icarus Films LENGTH 85 min COUNTRY France RELEASE U.S. Premiere

SYNOPSIS As she approaches her thirtieth birthday, Hélène possesses the look and spirit of a teenager. Although she is apparently unable to speak, read, or write due to autism, she is the author of SPONSORED BY powerful texts composed by assembling plastic letters alongside each other. Can a person who cannot speak or write in a neurotypical way produce beautiful literature? Director Julie Bertuccelli captures Hélène’s incredible story in this intimate portrait of a true visionary. FOCUS ON Julie Bertuccelli Bertuccelli has directed a handful of features SELECT AWARDS & NOMINATIONS and documentaries and in Cosmos she skillfully César Awards cuts between scenes of Helene “writing,” which Nomination: Best Documentary Film can recall the automatic writing sessions of the Lumière Awards Surrealists, and a series of performances where Nomination: Best Documentary Film her texts are adapted into theater pieces that she often takes part in. Filming in close-up or even REVIEWS extreme close-up, as if trying to better penetrate “An absorbing portrait of human creativity” the mystery residing behind Helene’s bewildering - Hollywood Reporter facial expressions, Bertuccelli (who operated camera and sound herself) underlines the enormous chasm separating her subject’s outward appearance from the insightful artistic mind that is reflected in her writing, leaving us to contemplate the difference between words, deeds and images. – Jordan Mintzer, The Hollywood Reporter

36 Angel Mon ange Sunday, April 2 - 2:50pm Bow Tie Cinemas, Greenwich, CT

GENRE Romance, Fantasy DIRECTOR Harry Cleven SCREENPLAY Harry Cleven, Thomas Gunzig CAST Elina Lowensohn, Fleur Gefrier DISTRIBUTOR Elle Driver LENGTH 84 min COUNTRY France, Belgium RELEASE North American Premiere

SYNOPSIS Devastated with grief after the mysterious disap- pearance of her magician lover, Louise is sent to a psychiatric asylum. Nine months later, she gives birth to Angel, a baby boy with an incredible gift: he is invisible. To protect him from the cruelty of SPONSORED BY the outside world, his mother hides his existence. Angel grows up quite normally until he meets Madeleine, a blind little girl of his age who lives nearby. They quickly fall in love and become inseparable, Madeleine still unaware of Angel’s invisibility. Until one day Madeleine announces something that will turn their lives upside down…

FOCUS ON Note from the Screenwriter FOCUS ON Poetic Potential “Invisibility, perhaps along with the dream of flying, “Thomas Gunzig had this fantasy about an invisible is a wish hidden deep down in people’s hearts. It is character coming into the world and then growing one of those desires that fuels their imaginations, up. I was captivated by the poetic potential of his their dreams and their fantasies. I have always proposition, and the idea of a romance between wanted to refresh the subject…To treat it in a new an invisible little boy and a little blind girl took way, placing it at the center of a story that would shape. Right from the start, Jaco Van Dormael— be modern, poetic, dramatic and romantic all at who had introduced me to Thomas—was excited once.” about the project and offered to produce the film. - Thomas Gunzig Following Jaco’s wise advice, we adopted a mini- malist style in developing the script, focusing on the straight and pure line of this impossible love. The story is written like a fairytale or a fable.” - Harry Cleven

37 Nelly Nelly Tribute to Quebec Sunday, April 2 - 3:55pm Bow Tie Cinemas, Greenwich, CT

GENRE Drama, Biopic DIRECTOR Anne Emond CAST Mylène Mackay, Mary-Claude Guerin, Catherine Brunet DISTRIBUTOR Seville International LENGTH 101 min COUNTRY Canada (Québec) RELEASE CT Premiere

GUESTS Anne Émond & Mylène Mackay

SYNOPSIS A film inspired by the imaginative, turbulent life and work of Nelly Arcan (Mylène Mackay), a SPONSORED BY literary star in France and Québec who died in 2009 at the age of thirty-six…the portrait of a fragmented woman, lost between irreconcilable identities: writer, lover, call girl, and celebrity… several women in one, careening from exaltation to disenchantment and back again. The film mirrors Nelly’s volatile life and radical work, SELECT FILMOGRAPHIES moving seamlessly between fact and fiction, as Anne Émond beautiful, jarring, and conflicted as the woman Nelly - 2016 whose story it tells. Our Loved Ones - 2015 Night #1 (Nuit #1) - 2011 SELECT AWARDS & NOMINATIONS Toronto International Film Festival Mylène MacKay Official Selection Nelly - 2016 Canadian Screen Awards Kiss Me Like a Lover (Embrasse-moi comme tu Best Costume Design m’aimes) - FFC 2017 Nomination: Best Cinematography Endorphine - 2015

38 Hissein Habré, a Chadian Tragedy Hissein Habré, une tragédie tchadienne Sunday, April 2 - 5:10pm Bow Tie Cinemas, Greenwich, CT

GENRE Documentary DIRECTOR Mahamat-Saleh Haroun SCREENPLAY Mahamat-Saleh Haroun LENGTH 80 min COUNTRY Chad RELEASE CT Premiere

SYNOPSIS In 2013, Habré’s arrest in Sénégal was a decisive breakthrough in a 23-year struggle pitting the ex-tyrant against survivors. This documentary by SPONSORED BY Mahamat-Saleh Haroun gives voice to the victims, who have shown that with courage and obstinacy, it is possible to bring a dictator to justice. The survivors wanted to make sure that those who committed crimes did not go unpunished. This universal story aims to put words to the untold tales that are marked in the skin of the victims, who still wonder how it is possible to live after having been through such monstrous events. It’s also a film about Africa and its relationship with the rest of the world.

SELECT AWARDS & NOMINATIONS SELECT FILMOGRAPHY Mahamat-Saleh Haroun Cannes Festival Grigris - FFC 2014 Nominations: Golden Eye, Special Sessions A Screaming Man - FFC 2011 Sex, Gombo and Salted Butter (Sexe, Gombo et beurre REVIEW salé) - FFC 2010 “Heart-stopping… Unflinching.” Dry Season (Daratt, saison sèche) - 2006 - The Guardian Abouna - 2002

39 Baby Bumps Telle mère telle fille Sunday, April 2 - 6:30pm Bow Tie Cinemas, Greenwich, CT

GENRE Comedy DIRECTOR Noémie Saglio SCREENPLAY Agathe Pastorino CAST Juliette Binoche, Camille Cottin, Lambert Wilson, Catherine Jacob DISTRIBUTOR Gaumont LENGTH 94 min COUNTRY France RELEASE North American Premiere

SYNOPSIS Avril (Camille Cottin) and Mado (Juliette Binoche) have always been inseparable, despite being opposites. Mother Mado, is quirky, fun-loving, and perpetually unemployed–an eternal teenager who SPONSORED BY is divorced from Avril’s elegant, self-congratulating father (Lambert Wilson). Avril is a responsible, hard-working adult who lives with her long-term boyfriend… and her mom. Mother-daughter bonding is taken to a new level when both women find themselves pregnant at the same time. Things get complicated in this laugh-out-loud confection with a star-studded cast, all of whom play against type for maximum comic effect.

SELECT FILMOGRAPHIES Noémie Saglio Juliette Binoche I Kissed A Girl (Toute premiere fois) - FFC 2016 Clouds of Sils Maria (Sils Maria) - 2014 Harry Me! The Royal Bitch of Buckingham (Connasse, Camille Claudel 1915 - 2012 Princesse des coeurs) - 2015 Paris - 2008 Connasse (TV series) Summer Hours (L’Heure d’été) - 2008 Les Voies impénétrables Hidden (Caché) - 2003 Camille Cottin Chocolat - 2000 I Kissed A Girl (Toute premiere fois) - FFC 2016 Children of the Century (Les Enfants du siècle) - 1999 Iris - 2016 The English Patient (Le Patient anglais) - 1996 The Fabulous Patars (Cigarettes et chocolat chaud) Three Colors: Blue, White, Red - 1993-1994 (Trilogy) - 2016 Damage (Fatale) - 1992 Harry Me! The Royal Bitch of Buckingham (Connasse, The Lovers on the Bridge Princesse des coeurs) - 2015 (Les Amants du Pont-Neuf) - 1991 Nos Futurs - 2015 40 2015 Benji Films / Palazzo Films / TF1 Droits Audiovisuels / UGC Images / TF1 Films Production

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Plus! Don’t miss our annual signature events, including Greenwich Wine + Food Festival, Golf Classic, Design Market and Fashion Night Out. serendipitysocial.com Guest of Honor Claude Lelouch Claude Lelouch is a legendary French filmmaker, producer and actor. In his almost sixty year career, he wrote, directed and produced no fewer than sixty-eight movies. At FFC 2017, he will present special screenings of Un plus une, as well as the North American Premiere of the restored edition of A Man and a Woman (Un homme et une femme), which was an international success at the time of its release, winning the Palme d’or at Cannes and two Oscars, for Best Foreign-Language Film and Best Original Screenplay—along with two additional Academy Award nominations, for Best Actress in a Leading Role and Best Director. We are honored to celebrate with Claude Lelouch the 50th Anniversary of his American triumph.

Guest Biographies

Richard Angers TRIBUTE TO QUÉBEC Richard Angers worked on numerous fiction films and documentaries as editor, sound designer, composer, screenwriter, and director before making his first full-length fiction film. After making a number of shorts, he directed children’s programs and wrote two documentary series. He went on to develop the drama, La Chambre no 13, which received ten Gemini nominations and three Gemini awards. He directed two shows in the series, as well as two documentaries Snowbird, non merci! and Les accros de l’Anachronisme. More recently while writing a number of full-length fiction films, he wrote and directed the documentary series Fou des oiseaux and finished directingA Pact Among Angels, his first full-length fiction film.

Philippe Azoulay Born in Paris, France in 1966, Philippe Azoulay is an acclaimed documentary/film director. With a background in theatre, TV and photography, he shot and directed various music videos and two documentaries before founding a film production company as an independent filmmaker: Rosebud Productions. This allowed him to direct several award-winning shorts, as well as producing and directing many documentaries broadcast worldwide. Since he founded another production company: Az You Like Films. He is also an environmentalist who took part in movements and events such as “One billion rising”, “Summit of Conscience” and “24 hr meditation for the ocean”, among others.

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Olivier Babinet was born in Strasbourg. He was intro- duced to the public with the TV series Le Bidule, which was broadcast on Canal+ in 1999. In 2008, he directed his first short film, C’est plutôt genre Johnny Walker. The film won many awards in festivals, including the Special Jury Prize at Clermont-Ferrand. His first feature film, Robert Mitchum Is Dead, co-directed with photographer Fred Kihn, was screened at the 63rd Cannes film festival in the ACID selection. The film won the Grand Prize at Premiers Plans festival in Angers and was nominated for Best First Film at London festival Raindance. In parallel, Olivier Babinet worked with Aulnay-sous-Bois school students for two years, in a neighborhood where 50% of families live below the poverty line. This collaboration resulted in these teenagers making eight fantasy and science fiction short films. The idea of making a documentary film about them gradually emerged from these encounters. Babinet was immersed with them for a total of four years. Swagger was presented at the Cannes Film Festival in 2016, in the ACID selection. Olivier Babinet is part of the artist collective “We are Familia” and has directed many music videos. He also contributes to New York magazine “Chalet”, in which his semi-imaginary journal, “Desire & Disillusion”, is published as a series.

Dominique Besnehard has had a career like no other: assistant director for Jacques Doillon (notably for la Drôlesse/ The Hussy), supporting actor, casting director and agent, he has discovered and represented an amazing array of French talents over the past 30 years, including actresses such as Juliette Binoche, Sophie Marceau, Isabelle Adjani, actors like Yvan Attal or Charles Aznavour and directors such as François Ozon or Claire Denis, to name only a few! He recently produced the film, Foreign Body (Corps étranger). He is also known in France as the host of a cinema show on Canal+: “Un ticket pour deux.” Since 2008, he has been the co-founder of the leading Festival du Film Francophone d’Angoulême, showcasing movies from all over the French-speaking world. Through the years, he has constantly brought people, movies and organizations together for the greater good of Cinema. 2014 marked the beginning of a long relationship between Le Festival Francophone d’Angoulême and Focus on French Cinema.

Jan Cousteau Explorer and environmental advocate, Jan Cousteau is the widow of Philippe Cousteau Sr., and the daughter-in- law of Captain Jacques-Yves Cousteau. As a member of the legendary family, Jan is continuing the legacy through EarthEcho International (www.earthecho.org), the non-profit organization she founded with her daughter Alexandra and son Philippe Jr.. She is also authoring a book on her adventures. Along with her husband Philippe Cousteau Sr. Jan led 22 expeditions filming the beloved “Undersea World of Jacques Cousteau” series. As one of the only women in the world to serve as a regular member of the Cousteau expedition crew, this model-turned-explorer filled roles ranging from logistics planner, procurator, and field surgeon to press liaison, translator, wildlife photographer, voice-over talent and even veterinarian. In addition to regularly joining her daughter Alexandra and son Philippe in the field, Jan remains an engaging and powerful storyteller—keeping alive the incredible stories of adventure most of us only saw once they were edited for the screen. 47 Anne Émond TRIBUTE TO QUÉBEC Anne Émond lives and works in Montreal. Between 2005 and 2011, she wrote and directed seven short films, Naissances and Sophie Lavoie among them, which screened at several international festivals and won many prizes. In 2011, she directed her first feature film, Nuit #1, which screened at more than twenty-five international film festivals, including Busan, Rotterdam, Taipei and the TIFF (Toronto International Film Festival). The film won several prizes and citations, including Best First Feature at the 2012 Genie Awards and has been sold to ten countries, most notably France and the United States. Les êtres chers, her second feature in 2015, was also well-received and acclaimed (Locarno, TIFF, Le Gala du Cinéma Québécois, Canadian Screen Awards). Her latest film, Nelly, for which she also wrote the screenplay, has been acclaimed at TIFF and the Canadian Screen Awards, among other international recognitions. The story is liberally adapted from the life and work of Quebec writer Nelly Arcan. Anne Émond will present Nelly at FFC 2017.

Yan England TRIBUTE TO QUÉBEC Nominated for an Oscar in the “2013 Academy Award Best Live Action Short Film” category for Henry, Yan England presents his first Feature Film: 1:54 as writer and director. Henry and his previous short film Moi gave Yan the opportunity to win numerous international awards. Born in Montreal, Canada, Yan started his career as an actor at the age of 8. He acted in many Canadian TV series. In the USA, he was seen in the film Stone- wall as well as TV series such as House of Versace and Buffy the Vampire Slayer. Yan England will present 1:54 at FFC 2017.

François Jaros TRIBUTE TO QUÉBEC Oh What A Wonderful Feeling, presented at FFC 2017, is the most recent short directed by François Jaros. His previous film, Maurice won the Best Fiction Short Award at the Quebecois Cinema Gala in March 2016. Toutes des Connes had won the same award the year prior in addition to having been selected for over 90 festivals including Sundance, Telluride, Gijon and Regard. Jaros has also directed the film Daytona a well as many television advertisement. Currently he is in postproduction of his TV show L’age adulte.

Dr. David I. Kline is Associate Project Scientist at Scripps Institution of Oceanography, University of California, San Diego. He is a coral reef ecologist who studies the fate of coral reefs to determine the future impacts of increasing carbon dioxide levels from molecular to ecosystem levels. In particular, he collaborates with computer vision scientists, engineers, chemists and physiologists to develop new techniques for studying the impact of climate change on coral

48 reefs. He has led or co-authored over 45 high impact peer-reviewed publications with over 2000 citations. He studies the ecology of corals and reef communities, and how reefs will change under the plethora of stresses they face, both local (e.g. pollution and disease) and global (warming and ocean acidification).

Mylène Mackay TRIBUTE TO QUÉBEC Mylène Mackay graduated in 2011 from L’École nationale du théâtre du Canada. Soon after, she co-wrote her first play, Elles XXx. After participating in Poésie Sandwichs et autre soirs qui penchent, directed by Loui Maufette, she created her second play, Je te vois me regarder. She acted in several TV series, such as Un sur deux, Les beaux malaises, Toi et moi and Unité 9. At the movies, she played in Endorphine, by André Turpin and more recently Embrasse-moi comme tu m’aimes by André Forcier, and Nelly by Anne Émond.

Aïssa Maïga is a French actress. She was born in Senegal to a Senegambian mother and a Malian father, an acclaimed journalist. When she was four years old, she and her family moved to France. As a Parisian teenager, she discovered her vocation as an actress playing various professional roles while studying theater in high school. Her big screen début was in Saraka bô in 1996, directed by Denis Amar. Since then, Aïssa has worked with a number of internationally renowned directors, including Michel Gondry (Mood Indigo), Abderrahmane Sissako (Bamako), and Michael Haneke (Code Unknown and Caché). Aïssa has been nominated for and won a number of prestigious prizes, including a Best Newcomer César (French Oscar) nomination in 2007 for Bamako and the Best Actress Prize in 2009 at the Bastia Film Festival for Italian director Cristina Comencini’s Black and White. She also won the Best Actress Prize in 2013 at the Luchon Film festival for her role in Denis Malleval’s Mortel été, as well as the Crystal Globe for Best Actress in 2016 for her role in Anything for Alice.

Marie-Castille Mention-Schaar began her career in cinema as a producer for Vendredi film, a company she co-created with Pierre Kubel and Frédéric Bourboulon. Together, they produced numerous films in the early 2000s including films by Antoine de Caunes (Monsieur N and Désaccord Parfait) and Pierre Jolivet (Zim and co, Je crois que je l’aime). She wrote the screenplay for La Première étoile in 2009 and directed her first feature film three years later, amusingly titled Ma Premiere fois (My First Time). Her second film, Bowling, inspired by a news story regarding a demonstration to stop the closing of the maternity ward in a hospital in Carhaix, resonates with Once in a Lifetime (Les Héritiers), which she presented at FFC 2015. Marie-Castille Mention-Schaar will present her most recent film, Heaven Will Wait (Le Ciel attendra) at FFC 2017.

49 Théodore Pellerin TRIBUTE TO QUÉBEC In 2013, Théodore Pellerin was cast on his first television show playing young gay man Sammy Azoulay in Fabienne Larouche’s daily programme 30 Lives. He then starred in multiple tv shows including The Theory of K.O., 19-2 and the popular Vrak TV show Med. Pellerin was in the short film Sigismond which was part of the competition of the Festival Interna- tional du Court Métrage de Clermont-Ferrand (France) and is featured at FFC 2017. He was directed by Philippe Lesage in The Demons, André Turpin in Endorphine and Kathleen Hepburn in Never Steady Never Still. Pellerin recently finished shooting his feature length film Chien de Garde, directed by Sophie Dupuis. For the first time, Pellerin performed on stage in Yen, a play produced by Lab 87 at Montreal Théâtre La Licorne.

Antoine Olivier Pilon TRIBUTE TO QUÉBEC Born in Montreal, Canada, in 1997, Antoine Olivier Pilon was 12 when he auditioned and landed the starring role of Frisson in the feature film Frisson des Collines (Richard Roy) over 1,500 other young actors. For two years in a row (2012-2013), he won “Best Performance in an International Feature Film – Young Actor” at the Young Artist Awards in Hollywood. Antoine Olivier then appeared in Laurence Anyways (Xavier Dolan) and also won the starring role of Janeau in Les Pee-Wee 3D, l’hiver qui a changé ma vie. He then starred in the controversial video by the group Indochine, College Boy, directed by Xavier Dolan. Following this collaboration, the young director offered Antoine Olivier the leading role in his film Mommy that earned the Jury Prize at the Cannes Film Festival in 2014. For this performance, Antoine Olivier won numerous awards including a Satellite Award in Los Angeles, a Canadian Screen Award in Toronto and he was named the most promising actor of 2014 by the magazine Elle France. Lately, he won the Best actor award for his role in 1:54 at the 2016 Festival du Film francophone d’Angoulême.

Émile Schneider TRIBUTE TO QUÉBEC Having finished his final year in theatre at CEGEP St-Hyacinthe, Émile Schneider earned his first role in the Reprise production of Winter Passed (Après la neige), a film by Paul Barbeau. Since then, the actor has landed many roles: he played the lead in Vrak TV’s Fée-Éric, and has appeared in Trauma, Mémoires vives, and Il était une fois dans le trouble. Otherwise, he has played in a number of independent short films, underground music videos, and clips by emerging artists. In cinema, Émile Schneider played the lead in Onur Karaman’s There Where Atilla Passes (Là où Atilla passe), alongside Roy Dupuis. He can also be seen as the young delinquent in Richard Angers’ A Pact Among Angels. Émile will be introducing two films this year at FFC: Kiss Me Like a Lover and A Pact Among Angels, going from historical melodrama to family drama with great ease.

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Our Team and Mission

EXECUTIVE COMMITTEE SELECTION COMMITTEE Renée Amory Ketcham - President Alliance Française Anne Kern - Director of Programming Gail Covney - Ticketing & Education Antoine Bancharel Marie-José Hunter - Communication and Mary Hardy Development Renée Amory Ketcham Anne Kern - Director of Programming Fereshteh Priou - Finance Guilhem Caillard - Guest Programmer, Laurence Teinturier - Business Development Tribute to Québec

FESTIVAL TEAM Antoine Bancharel - Communications Manager Géraldine Trippitelli - Social Media Jeanne Billaud - Guest Coordinator Beatrice Vornle - Special Ambassador for Belgium Sheila Cutner - Gala and On-Site Consulting Farah Walczuk - Administration Catherine de Lotbinière - Gala Coordinator Mireille Ferrier - Ticketing and Outreach Apolline Bas - Programming Intern Sylvie Fortin Racquet - Special Ambassador for Québec Megan Haug - Media Intern Mary Hardy - Scheduling and Outreach Charlotte Haughney-Siller - PR Intern Clément Letailleur - Festival Production Coordinator Clara Kennedy - Production Intern Harry McLachlin - Outreach Leta Mumgaard - Lead Student Volunteer Intern Elizabeth Poyet - Copy Editing Chloe Obach - Communications Intern Sylvie Sergent - Press Relations Damien Teinturier - Development and Strategy Intern

FOUNDING MEMBERS Philippe Muyl, French Director (2005) Pascal Thomas, French Director (2006) Coline Serreau, French Director (2005) Catherine Lamairesse, Founder (2005)

PATRONAGE Focus on FrenchCinema is placed under the patronage of : Permanent Representative of Canada to the United Nations, Marc-André Blanchard Permanent Representative of France to the United Nations, François Delattre Secretary-General of The United Nations, Antonio Guterres Special Representative of the United Nations Secretary-General on Violence against Children, Ms. Marta Santos Pais Secretary General of La Francophonie, Michaelle Jean Consulate General of France in New York, Anne-Claire Legendre Canada’s Consulate General in New York : Consul General, Phyllis Yaffe Cultural Counselor of The French Embassy, Bénédicte de Montlaur Cultural Attaché in New York, Catherine Albertin Québec Government Office in New York : Director Cultural Services, Jean Pierre Dion Québec Government Office in Boston : Director of Public Affairs, Marianne Bonnard SODEC, Direction générale des affaires internationales : Directrice Générale, Elaine Dumont Unifrance, Executive Director : Isabelle Giordano Conseillers du Commerce Extérieur en Amérique du Nord, Président, Paul Bensabat ATOUT FRANCE, France Tourism Development Agency : Director USA, Anne-Laure Tuncer

OUR MISSION • FOCUS ON FRENCH CINEMA brings the vitality of French and francophone cinema to our community • showcases the diversity of French and francophone cultures by promoting French film as a powerful storytelling medium • offers a unique opportunity to meet with French directors, actors, and producers • provides a learning tool to teachers and students, an authentic way to convey French Culture and language

75 Merci Beaucoup From the Alliance Française of Greenwich and Focus on French Cinema

PRESENTING SPONSOR DIRECTOR SPONSORS Purchase College, SUNY Cognac de Luze Québec Government Office in Ludia Boston Constantin, Serval & Associates Québec Government Office in RATPDev New York STAR SPONSORS Roche Bobois Raymond Debbane Family Sotheby’s Foundation TV5 Monde Royce Foundation Hill’s Sagax Entertainment Lyceum Kennedy Sofitel Ecole Internationale de New York Sorteer Greenwich Arts Council The Ashforth Company Organisation Internationale de la Unifrance Francophonie MEDIA PARTNERS SPONSORS AND PARTNERS BFM TV Aldo Canal Plus SUPPORTING SPONSORS Banque Transatlantique France - Amérique Bon Chien French Flicks Criterion Cinemas at Greenwich French Morning Plaza Hearst Media Services Brands Within Reach News12- CT Choate Rosemary Hall Serendipity Magazine - Main Cinemania Media Sponsor Cohen Media Group The Greenwich Sentine l- Main Consulate General of Switzerland News Partner in New York TV5 Monde Dominique Besnehard USA21.tv & Festival du Film WGCH Francophone d’Angoulême French-American Chamber of FOOD AND Commerce in New York COCKTAIL SPONSORS French Institute Alliance Putnam & Vine Française (FIAF) Stella Artois Greenwich International Le Penguin Bistro Film Festival Bistro Versailles Longchamp Méli-Mélo Crêperie and Juice Bar Lycée Français de New York Le Pain Quotidien Mark Active L’Escale Restaurant Bar Mission Permanente ONU Maison Kayser Canada Cognac de Luze Mission Permanente ONU France Aux Delices PI Executive Brands within Reach Putnam & Vine D’Artagnan

76 ENTERTAINMENT Chloe Obach SILENT AUCTION FASNY Rock Band Izabela O’Brien- The Fearless Assouline Publishing Angel Project BE Chocolat MANY THANKS TO... Plaza Restaurant Bobo Salon Apolline Bas Planet Pizza Catherine de Lotbinière Paul Bensabat Elizabeth Poyet Catherine Ladnier Diana Beste Farah & Rim Raslan Crisfields Adam Birnbaum Betsy Robertson De Luze Cognac Bistro Versailles Sagax Entertainment Donna Bunte Whole Health Antoine Blech Sundown Saloon Fereshteh Priou Catherine Brod Tia Sackda-Sananikone Gail & Michael Covney Nicky Castellucciw Peter Sandler Geraldine Trippitelli Charles Cohen Thomas Schwarz Greenwich Pilates Center Brita Daranyi - FAP Delphine Selles-Alvarez Harry McLachlin Colleen DeVeer Terissa Simental June and Ho Delamar Greenwich Harbor Marie-Monique Steckel Laura Parisi Luc Despins & Veronique Casi- Anchu Vidyarthy Mimi Wind mir-Lambert Marie Zeniter Moon Dream Webstore Yasmina Edwards Patrick and Hombeline Baugier L’Escale Restaurant and Bar Special thanks to our student Perfect Provenance Gerard Epelbaum volunteers and all the volunteers Roche Robois Mathieu Fournet that make Focus on French Silvie & Ilias Ermenidis Amélie Garin-Davet Cinema possible. The Avon Theatre Isabelle Giordano The Four Columns Inn Jennifer Granville The Organic Pharmer Louisa Greene The Yoga Center of Greenwich Mary & Luc Hardy Two B Accessories Megan Haug Charlotte Haughney-Siller Aude Hesbert Clara Kennedy Lynn Kern John Kochman Michelle Larroche LCI Design Antoine Le Carpentier Le Penguin Anne-Claire Legendre Elana Marcus Paul Master-Karnik Bénédicte de Montlaur Adeline Monzier Tatiana Mori Leta Mumgaard

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