AllianceFrançaise ofGreenwich Greenwich, CT Stamford, CT New York, NY Friday-Sunday Monday Tuesday April 27-29 April 30 May 1 #FFC2018 2018 Film Festival PRESENTING SPONSOR Where Performance Meets Peace of Mind Fiera Capital is a leading independent asset management fi rm that provides insti tuti onal, retail and private wealth clients with access to full-service, integrated portf olio-management soluti ons across a spectrum of traditi onal and alternati ve asset classes. fieracapital.com AllianceFrançaise ofGreenwich Proudly Presents the 14th Edition of Focus on French Cinema Welcome from Alliance Française of Greenwich Renée Ketcham, Chair President of the Alliance Francaise of Greenwich BIENVENUE... Welcome to Focus on French Cinema 2018, 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 festival embracing the best of cinema from France, Switzerland, Canada, Belgium, Lebanon and French- speaking African countries. Now in its 14th year, FFC2018 returns to Connecticut and Manhattan for 5 days of the best of French cinema from April 27 to May 1, 2018. The line- up represents César winning feature films as well as a selection of short films and our continued support of Québecois cinema coordinated by Guilhem Caillard, the Director Général of our partner festival, Cinemania. This year FFC is honoring some extraordinary women. Brilliant visionaries, these women are fearless new voices as directors, actors and producers...women who are driven by a sense of freedom and independence. The inclusion of multiple genres of cinema continues to be the hallmark of the year’s FFC selections. From comic capers to gripping thrillers, female resilience to war dramas, environmental adventure to migration, biopics and educational eloquence to heartfelt loss and spiritual enlightenment, FFC continues to honor the vitality of “ le septième art”. We welcome you, our audience, to 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 Renée Amory Ketcham - Chair, President, Alliance Française of Greenwich COMMITTEE Gail Covney - Co-President, Alliance Française of Greenwich Fereshteh Priou - Vice-President & Treasurer, Alliance Française of Greenwich SELECTION Mary Hardy, Renée Amory Ketcham, Harry McLachlin, Sylvie Sergent, COMMITTEE Guilhem Caillard- Québec selection Joe Meyers, Director of Programming I have been a fan of French cinema for most of my life, so to be named Director of Programming for Focus on French Cinema is a great honor. The selection committee has come up with a slate of films that demonstrates the continuing power and innovation of Francophone cinema. Entertaining. Daring. Moving. You will not soon forget these movies and the wonderful guests who will tell us how they were made. BIO: Joe Meyers writes about movies, theater and books for Hearst Connecticut Media Group which publishes Greenwich Time, the Stamford Advocate, the Norwalk Hour, Connecticut Post and Danbury News-Times. He is part of the team that puts out the weekly Arts & Style section in the five newspapers. Twice a month, Meyers hosts the Movie & A Martini series which Hearst has been sponsoring at theaters throughout Fairfield County, screening first-run films such as Carol and Spotlight as well as restored classics that have included The Third Man and Sweet Smell of Success. He has also moderated discussions after many French Cinematheque evenings at the Avon Theatre Film Center in Stamford presented in partnership with the Alliance Française of Greenwich. In the 1970s, Meyers ran the first (and only) art house on the Delmarva Peninsula—the Lewes Cinema— where he programmed films by Francois Truffaut, Luis Bunuel and other great European directors. In 2012, the Mystery Writers of America gave Meyers the Ellery Queen Award for his writing on crime fiction. execuπ ve PI THOUGHTS EXECUTIVEFOR LEADERS TALENT ADVISORY FIRM Pi Executive is part of The GROUP www.thepi-group.com W: www.piexecutive.com E: [email protected] C: +1.646-306-6570 MAISON D'ALEXANDRE Couture Beauty and Medispa 33 Lewis Street, Greenwich, CT 06830 203.661.1111 maisondalexandre.com FRENCH-AMERICAN SCHOOL OF NEW YORK INTERNATIONAL AND BILINGUAL SCHOOL Nursery (3 years old ) through Grade 12 Non-French speakers accepted in Preschool, Kindergarten and High School IB Diploma Programme Campuses in Larchmont & Mamaroneck www.fasny.org • (914) 250-0401 Better problem solving. Bigger thinking. Outstanding college acceptances. Discover our bilingual Preschool (now in Larchmont!), our IB Diploma Program with its 100% success rate and our new 9th grade International Program taught in English. Le Brio Friday, April 27 - 11am to 1:30pm Bow Tie Cinemas, Greenwich, CT Saturday, April 28 - 4:15 to 6pm Bow Tie Cinemas, Greenwich, CT GENRE Comedy DIRECTOR Yvan Attal SCREENPLAY Yaël Langmann, Victor Saint Macary, Yvan Attal, Noé Debré, Bryan Marciano STARRING Daniel Auteuil, Camélia Jordana, Yasin Houicha, Nozha Khouad LENGTH 95 min COUNTRY France US RELEASE CT Premiere Q&A with Hélène Godec following the Friday screening only SYNOPSIS Neïla Salah grew up in the Paris banlieue of Créteil, SPONSORED BY dreaming of becoming a lawyer. On her first day at the prestigious Université D’Assas in Paris, she faces off with Pierre Mazard, a teacher known for his outrageous and provocative behavior. To redeem REVIEWS himself, the professor agrees to prepare Neïla for “Yvan Attal réussit un film magnifique, une the prestigious contest of eloquence. Pierre could comédie diablement bien charpentée, nourrie become the mentor she needs… But they must de dialogues ciselés et loin d’être politiquement both overcome their prejudices. The script was anodine.” inspired by the annual rhetoric competitions held – France Télévision in France’s most prestigious law schools, where students are invited to plead on a wide range of Polished in a very Hollywood sense- Attal even subjects in the most eloquent and imaginative uses the same opening Marvin Gaye song as J.C. way possible. Chandor’s A Most Violent Year - the film flies by at an efficient 95 minutes and is saddled with a SELECT AWARDS AND NOMINATIONS strong technical package, including widescreen César Awards 2018 cinematography from Remy Chevrin (Love Songs) WINNER Best Promising Actress (Camélia Jordana) that steeps the action in a fair amount of shadow Nominations: Best Film, Best Actor (Daniel Auteuil) and grain. – The Hollywood Reporter Lumiere Awards 2018 Nominations: Best Actor (Daniel Auteuil), Most Promising Actress (Camélia Jordana) 11 GET CLOSER, GO FURTHER By your side every day, however you Moving people is what we do. want to travel We are proven experts at public transportation. Leveraging the Group’s expertise, RATP Dev operates and maintains expanding urban and intercity transport networks in the United States and around the world. We bring decades of worldwide experience to local communities. www.ratpdevnorthamerica.com RATP_Dev-FFC-5x8in.indd 2 06/03/2017 16:01 Montparnasse Bienvenüe Jeune femme Friday, April 27 - 3:30 to 5:15pm Bow Tie Cinemas, Greenwich, CT GENRE Drama DIRECTOR Léonor Serraille SCREENPLAY Léonor Serraille STARRING Laetitia Dosch, Grégoire Monsaingeon, Souleymane Seye Ndiaye and Léonie Simaga LENGTH 97 min COUNTRY France US RELEASE CT Premiere SYNOPSIS A young woman tries to reinvent herself after the end of a toxic 10-year relationship. Paula is back in Paris after a long absence and shows up with a cat, no money and no idea what to do with her life. Paula resorts to a series of desperate lies SPONSORED BY in order to keep a roof over her head and after several interesting encounters, she is ready for a fresh start. FOCUS ON Léonor Serraille - Director Debut feature by La Fémis graduate Léonor “Made in France with a modest budget, an almost Serraille and starring rising star Laetitia Dosch, entirely female crew, and considerable insight, Jeune femme is the story of a strong and capable Cannes Caméra d’Or winner “Jeune femme” was woman dealing with a brand-new life. directed by La Fémis graduate Léonor Serraille— . while pregnant, no less!—and features young SELECT AWARDS AND NOMINATIONS women in nearly every creative role, from camera Cannes International Film Festival, 2017 to composer, sound to set design. The presence Caméra d’or of strong, capable women across all departments Nominations: Un Certain Regard is every bit as important as the fact it chooses César Award 2018 to focus on one as its protagonist, doing so in a Nominations: Best First Film (Léonor Séraille), way that resists the male tradition of introducing Most Promising Actress (Laetitia Dosch) a hero, identifying a problem and admiring his composure as he races to solve it.” SELECT FILMOGRAPHY Laetitia Dosch - Actress – Variety Gaspard at the Wedding (2017) REVIEWS A Brief History of Princess X (2016) “Caméra d’Or winner at the last Festival de Cannes: 4 Days in France (2016) the first film of Léonor Serraille has everything to become a cult movie.” – Paris Match 13 LE MOULIN Event Planning & Fine Catering We are proud to support the Alliance Francaise of Greenwich “Focus on French Cinema” (914) 469-6762 lemoulincatering.com See You Up There Au revoir là-haut Greenwich Opening Night Friday, April 27 - 8 to 10:30pm Bow Tie Cinemas, Greenwich, CT GENRE Drama DIRECTOR Albert Dupontel SCREENPLAY Albert Dupontel and Pierre Lemaître STARRING Nahuel Pérez Biscayart, Albert Dupontel, Laurent Lafitte and Niels Arestrup. LENGTH 117 min COUNTRY France/Canada US RELEASE CT Premiere SYNOPSIS November 1918, a few days before the Armistice: Edouard Péricourt saves Albert Maillard’s life. These men have nothing in common but the war they SPONSORED BY are fighting. By ordering a senseless assault, Lieutenant Pradelle destroys their lives but binds them as companions in misfortune.