Only one will be able to represent France at the Oscars. Golden Palm “Anatomy of a Fall”“The Pion of Dodin Bouffant” or “On the Black Paths” are among the five films in the running to represent French cinema during the prestigious American ceremony, the National Cinematography Center (CNC) announced on Wednesday.
The choice between these films must be made following a commission between producers, international sellers and the American distributors of each preselected film, which must be held on September 21. A female director – the winner of the 2023 Palme d’Or, Justine Triet – and four directors are in the running.
“Saint-Omer” last French representative
Four of these films (“Anatomy of a Fall” by Justine Triet, “Goutte d’or” by Clément Cogitore, “La pion de Dodin Bouffant” – prize for directing – by Tran Anh Hung, and “The reign animal” by Thomas Cailley – which is due to be released on October 4 – were presented at the Cannes Film Festival. The fifth film is “On the Black Paths” by Denis Imbert, with Jean Dujardin. Released in March, it had exceeded one million spectators at the box office.
Last year, the film “Saint-Omer”, a double award winner at the Venice Film Festival, by director Alice Diop was chosen to represent France at the Oscars. “Titanium” by Julia Ducournau, Palme d’Or at Cannes in 2022, and French representative the same year, had not been preselected by the Academy of Oscars.
The last French film to win the Oscar for best international film was “Indochine” by Régis Wargnier in 1993.