2015 Schedule
* All films are in French, subtitled in English. THESE MOVIES ARE ACCOMPANIED BY SHORTS, INTRODUCTIONS BY GREAT SPEAKERS & Q&AS!
Opening Night - Friday March 27
Film: Bow Tie Criterion Cinemas - Greenwich, CT | Gala & Concert: 100 Arch Street (Teen Center) - walking distance
7pm - US Premiere with César Winner Actor & Director Jean-Paul Rouve
as well as Producers Romain Rousseau & Maxime Delauney
US Title: MEMORIES
Genre: Comedy
Director: Jean-Paul Rouve
Cast: Michel Blanc, Annie Cordy, Chantal Lauby, Jean-Paul Rouve, Mathieu Spinosi
Length: 96min
Release: France - January 2015
Romain is 23 years old sharing a small apartment in his native Paris. He aspires to be a writer but is currently working as night watchman in a hotel. His father (62) goes into retirement and pretends indifference. His roommate Karim (24) has only one thing in mind: to seduce each and every girl, any way he can... His 85 year old grandmother is sent to a nursing home and feels out of place amongst all these old people. One day, his grandma disappears. She has escaped from the nursing home. Romain takes off to go find her, somewhere in her memories…
"All the components of a movie that makes you laugh, cry, and in the end wants to do good" - Libération
9:30pm - Gala & Concert
Hosted by:
L'Academie Culinaire
de France,
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&
1:15pm - César Winner
US Title: HIPPOCRATES
Genre: Comedy-Drama
Director: Thomas Lilti
Cast: Vincent Lacoste, Reda Kateb, Jacques Gamblin, Marianne Denicourt
Length: 102 min
Release: France - Sept. 2014
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Benjamin is meant to be a great doctor, he’s certain of it. But his first experience as a junior doctor in the hospital ward where his father works doesn’t turn out the way he hoped it would. Responsibility is overwhelming, his father is all but present, and his co-junior partner, a foreign doctor, is far more experimented than he is. This internship will force Benjamin to confront his limits… and start his way to adulthood.
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7 Césars 2015 Nominations!
10:30am - NY Premiere Theater 1
Best Supporting Actor
Reda Kateb
US Title: UNDER THE STARRY SKY
Genre: Drama
Director: Dyana Gaye
Cast: Ralph Amoussou, Mareme Demba Ly, Souleymane Seye N’Diaye
Length: 88 min
Release: France/Senegal - Jan. 2014
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Turin, Dakar, New York. Sophie, Abdoulaye, Thierno. Three destinies crossing each other’s paths, echoing one another, delineating a constellation of exile. Sophie, 22 years old, leaves Dakar to join her husband Abdoulaye in Turin. However, Abdoulaye has left for New York, through a smuggler’s network. 19-year-old Thierno is traveling to Africa for the first time.
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"A sensitive look at a very lively mosaic of cities, cultures and encounters"
- Le Figaro
Guest:
Dyana Gaye
4pm - César Nominee
US Title: MAY ALLAH BLESS FRANCE
Genre: Biopic - Music
Director: Abd Al Malik
Cast: Marc Zinga, Sabrina Ouazani, Larouci Didi, Mickaël Nagenraft
Length: 96 min
Release: France - December 2014
The true story of Abd Al Malik, a French teenager rising out from the suburbs through love, education and rap music. A culturally gifted boy who dreams of success for his rap band through hard work and loyalty, must accept the drug money for the sake of his project. Discovering Islam and music, he bears with the harsh loss and paybacks, until he finds alone the strength to express himself through rap music and slam-poetry - and ultimately becomes a major artist of the French music scene.
Guests: Cesar Nominee Director Abd Al Malik
& Producer Fabien Coste
12pm - US Premiere
US Title: ASTERIX AND THE LAND OF THE GODS
Genre: Animation
Director: Louis Clichy & Alexandre Astier
Cast: Lorant Deutsch, Laurent Lafitte, Alexandre Astier, Alain Chabat
Length: 82 min
Release: France/Belgium - Nov. 2014
Julius Caesar unveils his latest plan to get rid of those indomitable Gauls once and for all. As his army has not been able to crush “the last pocket of resistance”, he decides to try a stealth invasion: civilization delivered to the village gates! He builds a new Rome-The Land of the Gods-around Asterix’s village, pressuring the Gauls to assimilate or vanish. Despite Asterix and Obelix’s plans to stop the construction work, the buildings quickly rise and the Roman citizens start to peacefully invade their surroundings, bringing chaos to Asterix’s village. Could this finally mean victory for Caesar?
US Title: LA SAPIENZA
Genre: Drama
Director: Eugene Green
Cast: Fabrizio Rongione, Christelle Prot, Ludovico Succio, Arianna Nastro
Length: 104 min
Release: France/Italy - March 2015
At the height of his career, Alexandre decides to set off for Italy with the idea of completing his draft – interrupted years earlier – of a book on Borromini. He is accompanied by his wife Alienor who feels her relationship with her husband gradually slipping away along with the passion it used to inspire. Having reached Stresa they happen to meet Goffredo and Lavinia, a pair of siblings who live there: the former is about to embark in architectural studies, the second is suffering from a nervous disorder.
2pm - NY Premiere
César Nominee
US Title: ONCE IN A LIFETIME
Genre: Drama - Education
Director: Marie-Castille Mention-Schaar
Cast: Ariane Ascaride, Ahmed Dramé, Noémie Merlant, Geneviève Mnich
Length: 105 min
Release: France - Dec. 2014
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Based on a true story, a teacher at the Léon Blum high school in Créteil decides to sign up her tenth grade class with the lowest grade in a national history contest. This experience will change their lives.
"A hopeful film and a tribute to the nobility of teachers' dedication" - Le Parisien
"The reactions of the students reveal how the holocaust still resonates on faces far removed from its horrors"
- The Hollywood Reporter
10:15am - US Premiere
US Title: PETITE REINE: Downfall of a Champion
Genre: Drama - Sports
Director: Alexis Durand Brault
Cast: Laurence Lebœuf, Patrice Robitaille, Denis Bouchard
Length: 97 min
Release: Québec - June 2014
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Based on a true story, The Little Queen follows Julie, a young cycling star, two races away from winning the World Cup - her reward for years of intense training. Then Julie is denounced for doping. Alone and with no knowledge of the world outside the realm of racing, Julie must find a way out. The problem: while she has been ruthlessly manipulated, Julie is nevertheless guilty as charged.
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"The biggest sports scandal in Québec's history" - Films Québec
10:30am - César Winner
US Title: MINUSCULE
Genre: Animation
Directors: Hélène Giraud, Thomas Szabo
Screenplay: H. Giraud & T. Szabo
Length: 89 min
Release: France - Jan. 2014
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In a peaceful little clearing, the remains of a picnic hastily abandoned during a summer storm spark warfare between two tribes of ants. At stake is a box of sugar! A bold young ladybug finds himself caught in the middle of the battle. He befriends one of the black ants and helps him save the anthill from the assault of the terrible red and warriors....
"An artfully made animation film leaving the viewer both dazzled and amused"
- Hollywood Reporter
7pm - US Premiere
Best Animation
Feature
US Title: PAUSE
Genre: Romance - Comedy - Music
Director: Mathieu Urfer
Cast: Baptiste Gilliéron, Julia Faure, André Wilms, Nils Althaus
Length: 82 min
Release: Swiss - Oct. 2014
Sami, a laidback songwriter, is shocked when Julia, a brilliant lawyer with whom he's been living for the pas four years, decides to put their relationship on hold. Coached by his old friend Fernand, an alcoholic country musician living in a nursing home for the elderly, he tries to achieve the impossible to prove to her she's the only woman for him.
4 Swiss Film Awards Nominations!
Best Fiction, Best Actor, Best Supporting Actor, Best Score
Swiss Film Awards
4 Nominations
US Title: MAESTRO
Genre: Comedy
Director: Léa Fazer
Cast: Pio Marmaï, Michael Lonsdale, Déborah François, Alice Belaïdi
Length: 85 min
Release: France - July 2014
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Henri, a young actor who wants nothing more than to star in Fast & Furious gets a part in the latest Cédric Rovère film, a monument of auteur cinema. The filming conditions aren’t exactly what Henri expected... But his acting partner’s charm and the film master’s benevolence will make him grow and express feelings he had never know before. Meanwhile, Rovère is taken by Henri’s youthfulness and whimsy.
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"A fun film, very charming" - Le Monde
6:30pm - 7 Césars!
US Title: TIMBUKTU
Genre: Drama
Director: Abderrahmane Sissako
Cast: Ahmed Ibrahim dit Pino, Toulou Kiki, Abel Jafri, Hichem Yacoubi
Length: 97 min
Release: France/Mauritania - Dec. 2014
Not far from Timbuktu, now ruled by the religious fundamentalists, Kidane lives peacefully in the dunes with his wife Satima, his daughter Toya and Issan, their twelve-year-old shepherd.
In town, people suffer, powerless, from the regime of terror imposed by the Jihadists, determined to control their faith. Music, laughter, cigarettes, even soccer have been banned. The women have become shadows but resist with dignity. Every day, the new improvised courts issue tragic and absurd sentences.
Oscar Nominee 2015
Best Foreign Film
6:30pm - US Premiere
US Title: I KISSED A GIRL
Genre: Comedy
Dir.: Noémie Saglio & Maxime Govare
Cast: Pio Marmaï, Adriana Gradziel, Franck Gastambide, Camille Cottin
Length: 98 min
Release: France - January 2015
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Jérémie, a 34 years old business owner, awakes one morning in an unknown apartment in bed with Adna, a beautiful Swede as funny as she is charming. Is this the beginning of a fairy tale? Highly doubtful as Jérémie is gay and about to get married to Antoine...
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"A half-social, half-romantic satirical comedy" - Le Figaro
4 awards - Alpes d'Huez Comedy festival: Grand Prize, Audience Award, Best Actor
Monday - March 30
IFC Center - 323 Ave of the Americas - New York, NY
Closing Night - Tuesday March 31
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French Institute - Alliance Française
22 E 60th Street - New York, NY
4 & 7:30pm - US Premiere - with César Nominee Director Jeanne Herry
US Title: NUMBER ONE FAN
Genre: Comedy - Thriller
Director: Jeanne Herry
Cast: Sandrine Kiberlain, Laurent Lafitte, Pascal Demolon, Olivia Côte
Length: 105 min
Release: France - Sept. 2014
Muriel is a beautician. She loves to talk, and has a habit of making stuff up and telling tall tales. And for the past two decades, Muriel has been the number one fan of French crooner Vincent Lacroix. Most of her spare time is spent keeping up with his songs and his concerts. Then one night, she opens her door to find Vincent – her idol – standing on her doorstep. His arrival turns Muriel’s life upside down as she embarks on a journey that even she couldn’t have invented.
"Starring the terrific Sandrine Kiberlain" - The Hollywood Reporter
"A tour de force from young director Jeanne Herry" - Elle
9:30pm - Closing Party
Film: Florence Gould Hall
Party: Tinker Auditorium
French Box Office:
#1 Family Movie!
7:30pm - US Premiere
US Title: THE CLEARSTREAM AFFAIR
Genre: Thriller
Director: Vincent Garenq
Cast: Gilles Lellouche, Charles Berling, Laurent Capelluto
Length: 106 min
Release: France/Belgium - Feb. 2015
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2001. The journalist Denis Robert sparked a storm in the world of finance in France by denouncing the murky operations of Clearstream, a banking firm. His quest for truth to try to reveal the "Affaire des affaires" connects with the investigation carried out by Judge Renaud Van Ruymbeke, deeply committed to fighting against corruption. Their paths will lead them to the heart of a political/financial intrigue named the "Clearstream Affair," which would rock the foundations of the Fifth Republic.
Based on a true story
Guests: Pio Marmaï
& Adrianna Gradziel
Based on a true story
Saturday March 28
Bow Tie Criterion Cinemas - Greenwich, CT
Locarno Film Festival:
International Competition
6:30pm - Locarno Nominee
Educational Screenings before, during & after the festival: click here
New this year: TWO events at Albertine, the exquisite French-American
bookstore on Fifth Avenue in NYC - Monday March 30th:
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*can be viewed streaming live online through the Albertine website
Also, during our Closing Night
at French Institute - Alliance Française - Tuesday, March 31st:
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- 5:45pm A book signing with Dominique Besnehard
US Title: THE GATE
Genre: History-Drama
Director: Régis Wargnier
Cast: Raphaël Personnaz, Kompheak Phoeung, Olivier Gourmet
Length: 95 min
Release: France/Belgium - Dec. 2014
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Cambodia, 1971. While he is working at restoring the temples of Angkor, François Bizot, a French ethnologist, is captured by the Khmer Rouge. Held in a camp deep in the jungle, Bizot is accused of being a CIA spy. His only chance of survival is to convince Douch, the young camp leader, of his innocence. While the Frenchman discovers the reality of Khmer Rouge indoctrination and recruitment, an indefinable bond forms between the prisoner and his jailer.
Based on a true story
1pm - US Premiere
Pre-Opening Night Special Screenings on Friday March 27:
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11am: Les Héritiers (NY Premiere) - 2pm: The Pursuit of Endurance (World Premiere) - 4:15pm: Asterix and The Land of the Gods (US Premiere)
These movies will also be repeated during the weekend (details below)!
9:15am - Round Table with our Guest Actors, Directors & Producers
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César Winner Actor & Director Jean-Paul Rouve; César Nominee Actor Pio Marmaï; Newcomer Actress Adrianna Gradziel
Award Winning Musician, Writer and Director Abd Al Malik; César Nominee Director Jeanne Herry
"A director to follow" (- Le Monde) Dyana Gaye; Writer, Director & Producer, Marie-Castille Mention-Schaar
Producer, former "Agent to the stars", Dominique Besnehard
Producers Maxime Delauney, Romain Rousseau & Antoine Le Carpentier
Music & Film Producer Fabien Coste
Theater 1
Theater 2 (repeat Sun., 4:30pm)
Theater 1
3:15pm
FFC SPOTLIGHT (Free screening):
YOUNG FRENCH PRODUCERS
Genre: Shorts
Collection Boris Vian
French writer Boris Vian was also a film buff. He wrote several short screenplays that were published in 1977 under the title Rue des Ravissantes but never adapted for the big screen until recently. Amongst the 20 screenplays, three recent adaptations were chosen for Focus on French Cinema.
L’autostoppeur
Notre Faust
Le cowboy de Normandie
Talents Cannes 2014
For over 20 years, Talents Adami Cannes has discovered young comedians and filmmakers between the ages of 18 and 30. Their films are screened during the Cannes Festival and seen by many prominent film professionals. The theme for 2014 was: "The Musical."
Theater 2
Theater 2
9:15pm
US Title: LIFE OF RILEY
Genre: Comedy-Drama
Director: Alain Resnais
Cast: Sandrin Kiberlain, Sabine Azéma, Hippolyte Girardot, André Dussolier
Length: 108 min
Release: France - March 2014
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In the Yorkshire countryside, the life of three couples is upset for a few months, from Spring to Fall, by the enigmatic behavior of their friend George Riley.
"The last pirouette of a cinematic magician before his farewell to the stage" - Le Monde
"Resnais orchestrates all with such graceful ease"
- Variety
Theater 1
Theater 2
Theater 2 (repeat Sun., 10am)
10am - César Winner
US Title: MINUSCULE
Genre: Animation
Directors: Hélène Giraud, Thomas Szabo
Screenplay: H. Giraud & T. Szabo
Length: 89 min
Release: France - Jan. 2014
s
In a peaceful little clearing, the remains of a picnic hastily abandoned during a summer storm spark warfare between two tribes of ants. At stake is a box of sugar! A bold young ladybug finds himself caught in the middle of the battle. He befriends one of the black ants and helps him save the anthill from the assault of the terrible red and warriors....
"An artfully made animation film leaving the viewer both dazzled and amused"
- Hollywood Reporter
Best Animation
Feature
Theater 1 (2nd Screening)
Theater 2
12:30pm
World Premiere
US Title: THE PURSUIT OF ENDURANCE
Genre: Documentary
Director: Bertrand Delapierre
Cast: Luc Hardy & eight explorers
Length: 52 min
Voice over: Christophe Lambert
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100 years after the epic Endurance expedition, 9 adventurers follow in the footsteps of the explorer Ernest Shackleton, hero of one of the greatest survival stories of Antarctic exploration. Their goal: relive part of the epic voyage of the 1914 team, but also live a personal adventure. 800 miles between Elephant Island and South Georgia in sailing boat, ski and pulka. The gathering of information, oceanographic and scientific data will provide for a better understanding of this part of the world
Q&A: Explorer & Filmmaker Luc Hardy
2:30pm
SHORT & FRENCH (free screening)
A selection from Annecy International Animated Film Festival
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Recommended for children 8 & older.
Each year, the Annecy International Animation Film Festival receives over 2,400 films (shorts and feature films, TV and commissioned films and graduation films) from all over the world between November and March.
Around 230 films are shortlisted to take part in the official selection. Here is a sample of the very best among those extraordinary works. As they say, to enjoy for people “from 8 to 88 years old”...
Theater 2
4:30pm - with Guest!
Theater 1
Theater 2
US Title: THE GATE
Genre: History-Drama
Director: Régis Wargnier
Cast: Raphaël Personnaz, Kompheak Phoeung, Olivier Gourmet
Length: 95 min
Release: France/Belgium - Dec. 2014
s
Cambodia, 1971. While he is working at restoring the temples of Angkor, François Bizot, a French ethnologist, is captured by the Khmer Rouge. Held in a camp deep in the jungle, Bizot is accused of being a CIA spy. His only chance of survival is to convince Douch, the young camp leader, of his innocence. While the Frenchman discovers the reality of Khmer Rouge indoctrination and recruitment, an indefinable bond forms between the prisoner and his jailer.
Based on a true story
4:30pm - US Premiere
Theater 2 (2nd screening)
Guest:
Pio Marmaï
Theater 1
IFC Center, New York
Sunday March 29
Bow Tie Criterion Cinemas - Greenwich, CT
Q&A: Producers
Antoine Le Carpentier, Maxime Delauney & Romain Rousseau
Theater 1 (2nd screening)
Theater 2 (3rd screening)
Theater 1 (2nd Screening)
9:30pm - US Premiere
US Title: THE CLEARSTREAM AFFAIR
Genre: Thriller
Director: Vincent Garenq
Cast: Gilles Lellouche, Charles Berling, Laurent Capelluto
Length: 106 min
Release: France/Belgium - Feb. 2015
s
2001. The journalist Denis Robert sparked a storm in the world of finance in France by denouncing the murky operations of Clearstream, a banking firm. His quest for truth to try to reveal the "Affaire des affaires" connects with the investigation carried out by Judge Renaud Van Ruymbeke, deeply committed to fighting against corruption. Their paths will lead them to the heart of a political/financial intrigue named the "Clearstream Affair," which would rock the foundations of the Fifth Republic.
Based on a true story
Theater 1
Guest: Marie-Castille
Mention-Schaar
Concert by:
"French Crooner""
Antoine
Bleck
COMPLIMENTARY
BREAKFAST
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Distinguished Presenters will be at your Festival!
Journalist, author and TV host, Olivier Barrot; award-winning Producer, Charles Cohen; Cultural Attaché, Head of Film, TV and New Media at the French Embassy in New York City, Mathieu Fournet; Consul General of France in New York, Bertrand Lortholary; Greenwich Arts Council Director, Paul Master-Karnik & France-Amérique President, Guy Sorman.
9pm
World Premiere
US Title: THE PURSUIT OF ENDURANCE
Genre: Documentary
Director: Bertrand Delapierre
Cast: Luc Hardy & eight explorers
Length: 52 min
Voice over: Christophe Lambert
s
100 years after the epic Endurance expedition, 9 adventurers follow in the footsteps of the explorer Ernest Shackleton, hero of one of the greatest survival stories of Antarctic exploration. Their goal: relive part of the epic voyage of the 1914 team, but also live a personal adventure. 800 miles between Elephant Island and South Georgia in sailing boat, ski and pulka. The gathering of information, oceanographic and scientific data will provide for a better understanding of this part of the world
Q&A: Explorer & Filmmaker Luc Hardy
Theater 1 (2nd screening)