23/02/2007

The crème de la crème of French film industry professionals will be dashing on Saturday evening to Paris’ Théâtre du Chatelet, where the major awards in French cinema, the 2007 Cesars ceremony, will take place.

This year’s edition promises to be one of surprises, with several talents who have never been nominated featuring among the nominees. In fact, none of the directors nominated in the Best Film Category have ever won the title.

Favourites Pascale Ferran’s Lady Chatterley [+see also:
film review
trailer
film profile], Guillaume Canet’s Tell No One [+see also:
trailer
film profile] and Rachid Bouchareb’s Days of Glory [+see also:
film review
trailer
interview: Jean Bréhat
interview: Rachid Bouchareb
film profile] (with nine nominations each) will battle it out with outsiders Philippe Lioret’s Don’t Worry, I’m Fine [+see also:
trailer
film profile] and Xavier Giannoli’s The Singer [+see also:
film review
trailer
film profile].

The same cloud of uncertainty looms over the Best Actor category. Up against regular Gérard Depardieu (winner of three Cesars and now nominated for a 15th time), the four other actors vying for the title are: Michel Blanc (fourth nomination), François Cluzet (second nomination and also nominated for Best Supporting Actor), Alain Chabat (third nomination) and newcomer Jean Dujardin.

The Best Actress category is also one of firsts, with four nominees who have never won before in the running, including well-known actresses Catherine Frot and Charlotte Gainsbourg (third nomination for both) and rising star Cécile de France, who is hoping for a third win after her Cesar for Best Supporting Actress in 2006 and for Best Newcomer in 2003. Actress Marina Hands could prove the dark horse for her first appearance (despite her nomination as Best Newcomer).

All will be unveiled tomorrow evening.

Nominations in the main categories:

Best Film
Days of Glory - Rachid Bouchareb
Don’t Worry, I’m Fine - Philippe Lioret
Lady Chatterley - Pascale Ferran
Tell No One - Guillaume Canet
The Singer - Xavier Giannoli

Best Actor
Michel Blanc - You Are So Beautiful
Alain Chabat - Rent A Wife
François Cluzet - Tell No One
Gérard Depardieu - The Singer
Jean Dujardin - OSS 117

Best Actress
Cécile de France - Avenue Montaigne and The Singer
Catherine Frot - The Page Turner (see Focus)
Charlotte Gainsbourg - Rent A Wife
Marina Hands - Lady Chatterley

Best Actor in a Supporting Role
Dany Boon - The Valet
François Cluzet - Four Stars
Dany Boon - Merry Christmas
André Dussollier - Tell No One
Guy Marchand - Inside Paris
Kad Merad - Don’t Worry, I’m Fine

Best Actress in a Supporting Role
Christine Citti - The Singer
Dani - Avenue Montaigne
Mylène Demongeot - French California
Bernadette Lafont- Rent A Wife
Valérie Lemercier - Avenue Montaigne

Best Director
Rachid Bouchareb - Days of Glory
Pascale Ferran - Lady Chatterley
Guillaume Canet - Tell No One
Philippe Lioret - Don’t Worry, I’m Fine
Alain Resnais - Private Fears in Public Places

Best Debut Film
13 (Tzameti) - Gela Babluani (see Focus)
Fragments of Antonin - Gabriel Le Bomin
You Are So Beautiful - Isabelle Mergault
Bad Faith - Roschdy Zem
Pardonnez-moi - Maïwenn

Best Foreign Film
Babel - Alejandro Gonzalez Iñarritu
Little Miss Sunshine - Jonathan Dayton and Valérie Faris
Brokeback Mountain - Ang Lee
The Queen - Stephen Frears (see Focus)
Volver - Pedro Almodóvar (see Focus)

Best Female Newcomer
Déborah François - The Page Turner
Marina Hands - Lady Chatterley
Mélanie Laurent - Don’t Worry, I’m Fine
Aïssa Maïga - Bamako
Maïwenn - Pardonnez-moi

Best Male Newcomer
Georges Babluani - 13 Tzameti
Rasha Bukvic - French California
Arié Elmaleh - L'école pour tous
Vincent Rottiers - Le passager
James Thierrée - Désaccord parfait
Malik Zidi - Poison Friends

Best Original Screenplay
Xavier Giannoli - The Singer
Olivier Lorelle & Rachid Bouchareb - Days of Glory
Isabelle Mergault - You Are So Beautiful
Danièle Thompson & Christopher Thompson - Avenue Montaigne
Laurent Tuel & Christophe Turpin - Jean-Philippe

Best Adaptation
Guillaume Canet & Philippe Lefèbvre - Tell No One
Pascale Ferran, Roger Bohbot & Pierre Trividic - Lady Chatterley
Jean-François Halin & Michel Hazanavicius - OSS 117
Philippe Lioret & Olivier Adam - Don’t Worry, I’m Fine
Jean-Michel Ribes - Private Fears in Public Places

Best Music Written for a Film
Armand Amar - Days of Glory
Mathieu Chedid - Tell No One
Jérôme Lemonnier - The Page Turner Mark Snow - Private Fears in Public Places
Gabriel Yared - Azur and Asmar

Best Production Design
Dominique Douret - Days of Glory
Maamar Ech Cheikh - OSS 117
Jean-Luc Raoul - Tiger Brigades
François-Renaud Labarthe - Lady Chatterley
Jacques Saulnier - Private Fears in Public Places

Best Cinematography
Patrick Blossier - Days of Glory
Éric Gautier - Private Fears in Public Places
Julien Hirsch - Lady Chatterley
Christophe Offenstein - Tell No One
Guillaume Schiffman - OSS 117

Best Sound
Jean-Marie Blondel, Thomas Desjonquères, Gérard Lamps - Private Fears in Public Places
Jean-Jacques Ferran, Nicolas Moreau, Jean-Pierre Laforce - Lady Chatterley
Pierre Gamet, Jean Goudier, Gérard Lamps - Tell No One
Olivier Hespel, OlivierWalczak, Franck Rubio, Thomas Gauder - Days of Glory
François Musy & Gabriel Hafner - The Singer

Best Editing
Martine Giordano - The Singer
Yannick Kergoat - Days of Glory
Sylvie Landra - Avenue Montaigne
Hervé de Luze - Private Fears in Public Places
Hervé de Luze - Tell No One

Best Costume Design
Marie-Claude Altot - Lady Chatterley
Jackie Budin - Private Fears in Public Places
Charlotte David - OSS 117
Pierre-Jean Larroque - Tiger Brigades
Michèle Richer - Days of Glory

Best Documentary Film
Dans la peau de Jacques Chirac - Karl Zéro & Michel Royer
La fille du juge - William Karel
Ici Najac, à vous la Terre - Jean-Henri Meunier
Là-bas - Chantal Akerman
Zidane: A 21st Century Portrait - Philippe Parreno & Douglas Gordon

Best Short
Pepper Candu - Marc Fitoussi
Sweet Dreams - Marilyne Canto
La leçon de guitare - Martin Rit
Le mammouth Pobalski - Jacques Mitsch
Les volets - Lyèce Boukhitine

(Translated from French)