12 French productions in the running

by Fabien Lemercier

31/08/2005 - Stronghold of European film production, France has no less than twelve productions selected across the different sections at the 62nd la Mostra in Venice which starts today and ends on Saturday 10th September. A huge presence ringed with three titles in official competition (read news from 30/08): Vers le Sud [trailer, film focus] by Laurent Cantet, with Gabrielle [trailer] by Patrice Chéreau and Les Amants réguliers [trailer] by Philippe Garrel. But festival-goers on the Lido can also discover directors such as Emmanuelle Bercot (Backstage) and Bruno Podalydes (Le Parfum de la dame en noir) screened out of competition, and also Jean-Pierre Limosin who presents Carmen in the Horizons section.

In the programme for the second edition of Venice Days are Le Petit Lieutenant by Xavier Beauvois which opens the section, 13-Tzameti by Gela Babluani and the French- Palestinian co-production Attente by Rashid Masharawi. For its part, the Critics’ Week offers in competition Le Passager [trailer], first feature from the actor Eric Caravaca, and Belzec, a documentary about the Shoah directed by Guillaume Moscovitz and screened in the Special Event. Elsewhere, France is also represented in the Horizons section by East of Paradise, a documentary about a figure from American underground cinema: Englishman Lech Kowalski. Worth noting also two minority French co-productions in official competition (Mary [trailer] by Abel Ferrara with Juliette Binoche and La Bestia nel cuore [trailer] by Cristiana Comencini) and Au fil de l’eau from Chinese director Li Yu, a Horizons selection, co-produced by Rosem Films.

Official Competition

- Vers le Sud by Laurent Cantet
Production: Haut et Court
Sales: Celluloïd Dreams

- Gabrielle by Patrice Chéreau
Production: Azor Films
Sales: StudioCanal

- Les amants réguliers by Philippe Garrel
Production: Maïa Films
Sales: Films Distribution

Out of competition
- Backstage by Emmanuelle Bercot
Production: Haut et Court
Sales: Wild Bunch

- Le Parfum de la dame en noir by Bruno Podalydes
Production: Why Not Productions
Sales: Celluloïd Dreams

Horizons
- Carmen by Jean-Pierre Limosin
Production: Capa Drama
Sales: Celluloïd Dreams

- East of Paradise by Lech Kowalski
Production: Agat Films & Cie

Venice Days
- Le Petit Lieutenant by Xavier Beauvois
Production: Why Not
Sales: StudioCanal

- 13-Tzameti by Gela Babluani
Production: Les Films de la Strada
Sales: MK2 Diffusion

- Attente by Rashid Masharawi
Production: Silkroad Production
Sales: Les Films du Losange

Critics’ Week
- Le Passager by Eric Caravaca
Production: Diaphana
Sales: Celluloïd Dreams

- Belzec by Guillaume Moscovitz
Production: VLR Productions
Sales: Films Distribution

(Translated from French)