Magritte Awards shine spotlight on Belgian Francophone cinema

by Aurore Engelen

14/01/2011 - Beyond the controversy, the Magritte Awards above all shine a much-needed spotlight on Belgian Francophone film production of recent months. Behind the powerhouses and almost-sacred hits like The Barons [trailer, film focus] (six nominations, including Best Film) and Mr Nobody [trailer, film focus] (seven nominations, also including Best Film), the Magritte Awards remind us that production is richer and more eclectic that it seems: for instance, nominated for Best Film is Hélène Cattet and Bruno Forzani’s Amer [trailer], a movie which went unfairly unnoticed in Belgium, but has earned cult status abroad thanks to end-of-year ratings (from the Inrockuptibles to Tarantino!).

Two “champions” of the young generation also received a bumper crop of nominations. With eight nominations, Olivier Masset-Depasse’s Illegal (LUX Prize 2010 competition) is vying for Best Film, Best Director, Best Screenplay, Best Supporting Actress, Best Sound, Best Editing, Best Production Design, and above all perhaps Best Actress for Anne Coesens (we can’t imagine the award escaping her grasp).

Meanwhile, Joachim Lafosse’s Private Lessons [trailer, film focus] is competing for Best Director and Best Screenplay, while the film’s cast dominates almost every acting category: Best Actor for Jonathan Zaccaï, Best Supporting Actor and Actress for Claire Bodson and Yannick Rénier, Best Female Newcomer for Pauline Etienne and Best Male Newcomer for Jonas Bloquet…

Also, in no particular order, there are nominations for A Town Called Panic [trailer, film focus], The Boat Race [trailer], Angel At Sea [trailer], Sister Smile [trailer], Motherly, and great visibility for minority co-productions, including Flemish films My Queen Karo [trailer] and Altiplano [trailer].

No fewer than 20 prizes (including an Audience Award, and an Honorary Magritte for André Delvaux) will therefore be presented on Saturday, February 5. The evening will be presented by the delightful Héléna Noguerra. So, who will come away winners at this first Magritte Awards ceremony? It’s anyone’s guess…

Nominations

Best Film
Amer (Anonymes Films – Eve Commenge)
The Barons (Entre Chien et Loup – Sébastien Delloye and Diana Elbaum)
Illegal (Versus Production – Jacques-Henri and Olivier Bronckart)
Mr Nobody (Toto and co – Olivier Rausin)

Best Director
Nabil Ben Yadir for The Barons
Joachim Lafosse for Private Lessons
Olivier Masset-Depasse for Illegal
Jaco Van Dormael for Mr Nobody

Best Co-production
Altiplano (Entre Chien et Loup - Diana Elbaum and Sébastien Delloye)
The Concert (Panache Productions - André Logie)
Looking for Eric (Les Films du Fleuve - Jean-Pierre and Luc Dardenne)
My Queen Karo (Tarantula - Joseph Rouschop)

Best Original Screenplay or Adapted Screenplay
Nadil Ben Yadir and Laurent Brandenbourger with collaboration from Sébastien Fernandez for The Barons
Joachim Lafosse and François Pirot for Private Lessons
Olivier Masset-Depasse for Illegal
Jaco Van Dormael for Mr Nobody

Best Actress
Anne Coesens in Illegal
Cécile de France in Sister Smile
Yolande Moreau in Mammuth [trailer, film focus] *
Aylin Yay in Motherly
* : films ineligible for the Magritte awards for Best Film or Best Co-production but where the aforementioned Belgian actors play important roles. The Board of Directors of the André Delvaux Academy thus wanted to enable people to celebrate their performances in those films too.

Best Supporting Actress
Claire Bodson in Private Lessons
Sandrine Blancke in Sister Smile
Christelle Cornil in Illegal
Yolande Moreau in Je T’aime, Moi Non plus [trailer] *
* : films ineligible for the Magritte awards for Best Film or Best Co-production but where the aforementioned Belgian actors play important roles. The Board of Directors of the André Delvaux Academy thus wanted to enable people to celebrate their performances in those films too.

Best Actor
Monir Ait Hamou in The Barons
Olivier Gourmet in Angel At Sea
Thierry Hancisse in The Boat Race
Jonathan Zaccaï in Private Lessons

Best Supporting Actor
Two actors tied in fourth position, which is why there are five nominees in this category.
Laurent Capelluto in OSS 117: Lost In Rio [trailer] *
François Damiens in Heartbreaker [trailer] *
Jan Decleir in The Barons
Benoît Poelvoorde in Coco Before Chanel [trailer] *
Yannick Renier in Private Lessons
* : films ineligible for the Magritte awards for Best Film or Best Co-production but where the aforementioned Belgian actors play important roles. The Board of Directors of the André Delvaux Academy thus wanted to enable people to celebrate their performances in those films too.

Best Female Newcomer
Stéphanie Blanchoud in The Boat Race
Pauline Etienne in Private Lessons
Anna Franziska Jager in My Queen Karo
Chloé Struvay in Motherly

Best Male Newcomer
Amir Ben Abdelmoumen in Oscar and the Lady In Pink [trailer]
Jonas Bloquet in Private Lessons
Martin Nyssen in Angel At Sea
Joffrey Verbruggen in The Boat Race

Best Cinematography
Christophe Beaucarne for Mr Nobody
Manu Dacosse for Amer
Alain Marcoen for The Boat Race

Best Sound
Marc Bastien, François Dumont and Thomas Gauder for Illegal
Benoît Biral, Valene Leroy, Julien Paschal, Fred Piet and Franco Piscoppo for A Town Called Panic
Emmanuel de Boissieu, Frederic Demolder and Dominique Warnier for Mr Nobody

Best Editing
Damien Keyeux for Illegal
Ludo Troch for The Concert
Matyas Veress for Mr Nobody

Best Production Design
Mohammed Ayada for The Barons
Eric Blesin and Marc Nis for A Town Called Panic
Patrick Dechesne and Alain-Pascal Housiaux for Illegal

Best Costume Design
Bernadette Corstens for My Queen Karo
Anne Fournier for Altiplano
Christophe Pidre and Florence Scholtes for Sister Smile

Best Original Score
Bernard Plouvier for A Town Called Panic
Pierre Van Dormael for Mr Nobody
Frédéric Vercheval for Diamond 13 [trailer]

Best Short Film
The Swing by Christophe Hermans
So Close by Rémi Durin
Sleepless Night by Samuel Tilman
For You I Will Fight by Rachel Lang
Under Blue Skies by Arnaud Demuynck and Cécilia Marreiros Marum

Best Documentary
Paths of Memory by Jose Luis Peñafuerte
Dreaming Films by Eric Pauwels
Katanga Business [trailer] by Thierry Michel
Terre d’Usage by Sophie Bruneau and Marc-Antoine Roudil
Winds of Sand, Women of Rock by Nathalie Borgers

(Translated from French)