VCUf re n c h fi l m f estiva l 12th annual • B y rd Theatre • Richmond, Va . • (804) 827-FILM • w w w. f re n c h f i l m . v c u . e d u • All films have English subtitles and are presented by their actors and dire c t o r s . M a rch 26-28, 2004 V i r g i n i a C o m m o n w e a l t h U n i v e r s i t y Table of contents 2 Schedule and event 2 9 S h o rt s i n f o r m a t i o n L’Homme de la boîte 3 Le Bison B o n h o m m e s 5 Un monde presque paisible « Pôv’ fille ! » 7 Ta soeur a n d Les Amateurs La Collection de Judicaël 9 M o n i q u e C a s a 1 1 La Prophétie des grenouilles P a c o t i l l e 1 3 La Petite Lili Le Fabuleux Destin de 1 5 Effroyables jardins Perrine Martin 1 7 Petits arrangements avec Léaud de Hurle-dents les morts La Flamme 1 9 ? Surprise Screening ? Gouille et Gar 2 1 A la petite semaine De la tête aux pieds 2 3 Monsieur N Somebody Exceptional 2 5 Filles uniques L’Homme sans tête Philippe Torreton as Napoleon I. This year’s festival features the following 2004 César Aw a rd nominees and winners, and Cannes International Film Festival Aw a rd winner: A la petite semaine César Award for Best New Female Actor: César nomination for Best Male Actor in a Julie Depardieu Supporting Role: Clovis Cornillac Monsieur N La Petite Lili César nomination for Best Photography César nomination for Best Director: Claude Miller César nomination for Best Original Score César nomination for Best Male Actor in a César nomination for Best Costumes Supporting Role: Jean-Pierre Marielle César nomination for Best Set César nomination for Best Female Actor in a Supporting Role: Nicole Garcia L’Homme sans tête 2003 Cannes Film Festival “Prix du Jury” César Award for Best Female Actor in a Award for Best Short Film and 2004 Supporting Role: Julie Depardieu César Award for Best Short Film I n f o r m a t i o n Friday, March 26 4:30 p.m. Effroyables jardins Discussion with director 5 p.m. Le Bison Jean Becker and producer 7 p.m. Un monde presque paisible Louis Becker 9 p.m. Ta soeur 7 p.m. Official Reception at the Les Amateurs Virginia Museum of Fine Arts Discussion with director 8:30 p.m. Gala Dinner at the historic Martin Valente Scott House 11:15 p.m. Monique m i d n i g h t Petits arrangements avec S a t u rday, March 27 les mort s 9 a.m. La Prophétie des grenouilles ( c h i l d r e n ’s feature) Sunday, March 28 Discussion with director 9 a.m. ? Surprise Screening ? Jacques-Rémy Girerd Discussion with director 11 a.m. First Short Film Series begins 10:20 a.m. Second Short Film Series begins L’Homme de la boîte – La Flamme T h e a t re French version L’Homme sans tête Discussion with directors The Byrd Theatre is located at L’Homme de la boîte – 2908 W. Cary St. in Richmond. English version Ron Dyens and Juan Solanas Gouille et Gar A parking deck is located directly Bonhommes behind the theater. Discussion with producer De la tête aux pieds Alexandre Mehring and directors Somebody Exceptional O f ficial Reception Cecilia Marreiros-Marum and Discussion with directors The Official Reception for all Slony Sow Philippe Gamer, Xavier Marquis Festival pass-holders (Student VIP, « Pôv’ fille ! » and actress Dora Doll 11:30 a.m. A la petite semaine Faculty VIP, Regular VIP and VIP La Collection de Judicaël Pass Plus) will be held on the Discussion with directors Discussion with director Sam Karmann and actress evening of Saturday, March 27 at Jean-Luc Baraton, Patrick 7 p.m., in the Virginia Museum of Maurin and Corinne Garfin Julie Durand 1:40 p.m. Monsieur N Fine Arts, located at the corner of Casa Grove Avenue and the Boulevard Pacotille Discussion with actor Philippe Torreton (two short blocks away from the Le Fabuleux Destin de Byrd Theatre). The museum’s Perrine Martin 4:20 p.m. Closing ceremony with French Delegation and parking entrance is accessible Discussion with producer from Grove Av e n u e . Stéphanie Carreras and directors VCU dignitaries Eric Jameux, Sylvie Léonard 4:50 p.m. Filles uniques Gala Dinner and Olivier Ciappa The Gala Dinner for VIP Plus Léaud de Hurle-dents pass-holders will take place on Discussion with director S a t u r d a y, March 27 at 8:30 p.m., Jacques Richard at VCU’s historic Scott House 1:45 p.m. La Petite Lili (909 W. Franklin St.). Special Discussion with producer parking on both sides of We s t Annie Miller and actor Franklin, from Laurel to Harrison Robinson Stévenin (two blocks), has been arranged 4 p.m. Presentation of the 2004 French exclusively for Gala Dinner guests Delegation, introduced by His (VIP Plus Pass holders). Excellency Jean-David Levitte, the French Ambassador to the United States VCUfre n c hfilmfestival 2 Le Bison English description Description en français f e a t u re Louis Le Bison is something of a Louis Le Bison est un homme solitaire, l o n e r, a bit of a misanthrope and slightly misanthrope et un rien bohème. Dorine, Festival directors Drs. Peter and bohemian. Dorine, the superintendent of sa gardienne d’immeuble, est quant à elle, Françoise Kirkpatrick present his building, is a married woman awaiting mariée et attend un cinquième enfant. her fifth child. Their personalities are Tous deux ont des caractères diamétrale- this U.S. premiere of Le Bison diametrically opposed. ment opposés. But one day, they find themselves Mais un jour, ils sont obligés de forced to help each other out when s’entraider lorsque le mari de Dorine D o r i n e ’s husband leaves to start a new life s’en va refaire sa vie avec la compagne with Louis’ girlfriend. de Louis. director Isabelle Nanty screenplay Isabelle Nanty, Fabrice R o g e r-Lacan producer Claude Berri starring Edouard Baer, 3 Isabelle Nanty, Pierre-François Martin Laval, Juliette Duval Le Bison d i re c t o r / a c t r e s s / p ro d u c e r / s c reenwriter Isabelle Nanty Interview with Isabelle Nanty E n t retien avec Isabelle Nanty selected films since 1990 2 0 0 3 Casablanca driver by Maurice Barthélémy How did the idea for this film Comment vous est venue l’idée Pas sur la bouche by Alain Resnais come to you? du film ? Zéro-un by Jeanne Biras We live in a time when bureaucracy On vit à une époque où dans les 2 0 0 2 Toutes les filles sont folles forces people, already struggling, to wait administrations, vous voyez des gens by Pascale Pouzadoux A l’abri des regards indiscrets behind the counters, as though they were derrière des comptoirs dans de grandes by Ruben Alves caught in the wheels of a machine. … We difficultés, ils sont dans un engrenage… 2 0 0 1 3 zéros by Fabien Onteniente live in a world in which you can’t afford to On est dans un monde où il ne faut pas Astérix et Obélix : mission Cléopâtre be in a bind. But that doesn’t suffice as a être dans la mouise. Mais ça ne suffit pas by Alain Chabat 2 0 0 0 Le Fabuleux Destin d’Amélie Poulain theme. So I brought together two mecha- comme thème. Alors j’ai mis en rapport by Jean-Pierre Jeunet nisms churning in opposite directions, by deux engrenages contraires, en parlant 1 9 9 9 Les Frères Sœur by Frédéric Jardin adding yet another mechanism — that of aussi de l’engrenage de la relation. Le 1 9 9 7 Ca reste entre nous by Martin Lamotte relationships. The character of Le Bison personnage de Le Bison rentre dans cet 1 9 9 4 La Folie douce by Frédéric Jardin 1 9 9 3 Les Vi s i t e u r s by Jean-Marie Poiré falls into that mechanism: when you smile engrenage : quand on sourit à quelqu’un, 1 9 9 2 La Belle Histoire by Claude Lelouch at someone, there’s always a risk that it will ça risque d’aller encore plus loin. Les deux Sexes faibles by Serge Maynard go further. The characters of Le Bison and personnages de Dorine et de Le Bison font Dorine belong to two different worlds, just partie de deux mondes différents comme a c t o r / d i re c t o r / p ro d u c e r / as the characters in fables do. In this case, dans une fable : le monde des (belles) s c reenwriter E d o u a rd Baer the world of beautiful ideas (that of Le idées, celui de Le Bison, et le monde de selected films since 1990 2 0 0 3 Double zéro by Gérard Pirès Bison), and the world of the survivors and ceux qui survivent et qui agissent, celui de Un autre que moi by Laurent Ti r a r d the doers (that of Dorine).