The American French Film Festival turns 30 in Los Angeles
The American French Film Festival turns 30 in Los Angeles
The American French Film Festival is celebrating its 30th year, with 60 films, shorts and series screening in Los Angeles until November 8. The anniversary edition opened on November 3 at the DGA Theater Complex, the venue of the Directors Guild of America in Hollywood, which the festival has returned to for this milestone.
The opening-night film is "In Waves", an animated feature that sits a little outside the usual idea of a French film. It is English-language, set on the Southern California coast and based on a U.S. graphic novel. French producers bought the project, and it was workshopped at the festival, according to Variety. Netflix bought the film at Cannes. It is directed by Phuong Mai Nguyen, a French-Vietnamese animator.
The festival is presented and produced by the Franco-American Cultural Fund. François Truffart has served as its executive producer and programmer since 2004, and Anouchka van Riel is its deputy director. The event is backed by the Directors Guild of America, the Motion Picture Association, Sacem and the Writers Guild of America West. Film France-CNC, Villa Albertine and Unifrance also support the event.
The 30th edition will show 31 fiction features, according to Variety. Among them is Andrey Zvyagintsev's "Minotaur", which is France's entry in the international Oscar race. The festival has been screening series since 2015, and this year's TV lineup was announced in late October.
Several titles have their first screenings on the West Coast or in the United States. "Congo Boy" has its West Coast premiere on November 4 at 1:15 p.m., and "Karma" has its North American premiere the same day at 5:25 p.m. "The Electric Kiss" has its LA premiere on November 4 at 8:30 p.m., followed by a conversation with director Pierre Salvadori.
"Forsaken" (L'Abandon) has its U.S. premiere on November 5 at 7:30 p.m. at the DGA Theater Complex, with director Vincent Garenq taking part in a conversation afterwards. The film stars Antoine Reinartz and Emmanuelle Bercot and follows the eleven days before the murder of French teacher Samuel Paty. It was presented out of competition at Cannes, per the festival's website.
"We Are the Orchestra" (Nous l'orchestre), a documentary about the Orchestre de Paris under conductor Klaus Mäkelä, has its West Coast premiere on November 7 at 11:00 a.m., followed by a conversation with writer and director Philippe Béziat.
Tickets are sold through tafff.org. An educational programme runs from November 2 to November 6. For the anniversary, the festival has also planned a 30-foot cake.
