Festivals - Colcoa 2018 : The cinema competition

Par Mulder, 04 avril 2018

The Franco-American Cultural Fund announced today the program for the 22nd COLCOA FRENCH FILM FESTIVAL, which will run April 23-30 at the Directors Guild of America in Los Angeles. The event will showcase a record 86 films, television series, digital series and VR programs. 75 of these will be in competition for the COLCOA Awards, including several World, International, North American, and U.S. Premieres. COLCOA is considered the largest festival dedicated to French films and series worldwide.

An exclusive lineup of 37 new features and documentaries will compete for the COLCOA CINEMA AWARDS, beginning on Opening Night (Monday, April 23) with the North American Premiere of writer/director Eric Barbier’s PROMISE AT DAWN. This adaptation of French author Romain Gary’s autobiography and celebration of his mother gathers, in the title roles, Pierre Niney and Charlotte Gainsbourg

The cinema competition will close on Monday, April 30, with the North American Premiere of Cedric Kahn’s new drama, THE PRAYER. The film recently had its triumphant world premiere at the Berlin Film festival where newcomer Anthony Bajon won the Best Actor Award.

The line-up includes new features from established writers/directors, including w/d Mathieu Amalric (BARBARA), w/d Yvan Attal (LE BRIO), w/d Daniel Auteuil (THE OTHER WOMAN), w/d Xavier Beauvois (THE GUARDIANS), w/d Samuel Benchetrit (DOG), w/d Christian Carion (MY SON), w/d Alain Chabat (CHRISTMAS AND CO), w/d Dany Boon (FAMILY IS FAMILY), w/d Albert Dupontel (SEE YOU UP THERE), w/d Emmanuel Finkiel (MEMOIR OF WAR), w/d David and Stephane Foenkinos (JEALOUS) w/d Yann Gozlan (BURN OUT), w/d Naomi Kawase (RADIANCE), w/d Mélanie Laurent (DIVING, THE ADOPTED), w/d Philippe Le Guay (NAKED NORMANDY), w/d Eric Toledano & Olivier Nakache (C’EST LA VIE!), w/d Laurent Tirard (RETURN OF THE HERO) and w/d Nicolas Vannier (SCHOOL OF LIFE).

The festival will also present the work of newcomers such as w/d Fillipe Barboza (GABRIEL AND THE MOUNTAIN), w/d Modi Barry & Cédric Ido (CHÂTEAU), w/d Hubert Charuel (BLOODY MILK), w/d Charles de Meaux (THE LADY IN THE PORTRAIT with Chinese star Fan Bing Bing), w/d Elsa Deringer (LUNA), w/d Marie Garel-Weiss (THE PARTY IS OVER), w/d Julien Hallard (LET THE GIRLS PLAY), w/d Xavier Legrand (CUSTODY), w/d Nawell Madani (STAND UP GIRL!) w/d Dominique Rocher (THE NIGHT EATS THE WORLD) and w/d Léonor Seraille (MONTPARNASSE BIENVENÜE).

Actors Camélia Jordana (LE BRIO), Vanessa Paradis (DOG), Nahuel Perez Biscayart (SEE YOU UP THERE), Melville Poupaud (THE LADY IN THE PORTRAIT, BEYOND SUSPICION), Antony Bajon (THE PRAYER) and veteran w/d Francis Veber (20th anniversary of THE DINNER GAME) will be in attendance at the festival, with additional talent to be announced shortly.

The popular COLCOA High School screening program will run for five days during the festival. More than 3,000 Southern California students and teachers are invited to attend free screenings and conversations, as well as participate in a student film critic contest. Celebrating its 11th year, this program is produced in partnership with ELMA (European Languages and Movies in America), with the support of AATF-SC (American Association of Teachers of French – Southern California). In addition, master classes will take place at several film schools across the city with the support of the Cultural services of the French Embassy in the US and ELMA.

Other exciting programs offered throughout the festival include: After 10 series (April 24~28); COLCOA Classics (April 24~28); COLCOA Documentaries (April 24~29); World Cinema Produced by France, including two French-Italian co-productions (April 25); Focus on a Filmmaker, dedicated to writer/director Mélanie Laurent (April 26); Films Noir Series (April 28); French NeWave 2.0, exploring first films directed by women (April 28); and the Happy Hour Talks, a series of panels presented in association with Variety (April 24-28) that is free to the general public. Panel will include a discussion about distribution and promotion revolution in the digital area on April 25, Place of Women in the Industry in France on April 27 and a focus on composer Laurent Perez Del Mar on April 28.

(Source: press release)