Gaelic Goes Gallic As French Film Fest Opens

A French film event is now underway in Dublin, courtesy of the Irish Film Institute (IFI).
The IFI French Film Festival Gala Opening screening of The Bird - with special guest Yves Caumon - kicked off 12 days of the highlights from Cannes and Venice, French classics, a special French menu and a host of industry VIPs on Wednesday, 16th November to run until the 27th November.
The Bird, a tender drama of a woman coming to terms with grief features a stunning performance from Sandrine Kiberlain with the film's director Yves Caumon also attending and taking part in a Q+A before the reception started.
For 12 days the IFI is once more transforming itself into Dublin's Gallic hub with a wide range of special guests coming to present their work and discuss French cinema.
Special Guest highlights still to come include veteran character actor Jean-Pierre Darroussin presenting Early One Morning, major critic Michel Ciment interviewing leading French filmmaker Claude Miller during a focus on his recent work, Philippe Ramos presenting his new take on an iconic subject of French history The Silence of Joan, and Luce Vigo presenting a selection of winners of the innovative Prix Jean Vigo - the prize named after her legendary filmmaker father.
Other familiar faces to French film fans to watch out for in the Festival include Catherine Deneuve acting in His Mother's Eyes and Beloved, Sandrine Kiberlain in The Bird and Service Entrance and Chiara Mastroianni in Beloved.
Alongside these veterans there are two particularly astonishing newcomers; the heart-wrenching turn from 11-year-old Thomas Doret in the Dardenne brothers' Cannes hit The Kid with the Bike and Yahima Torres' riveting debut in Abdellatif Kechiche's Black Venus as Sarah Baartman, an enslaved African who was exhibited around 19th century Europe.
Alongside new acting talent, the three films in the First-Time Directors strand present a vibrant picture of the up and coming generation of French filmmakers: Simon Werner’s Lights Outfollows the aftermath of a high school abduction, Roland Edzard's The End of Silence follows a hunting trip tinged with vengeance, and Cyril Mennegun's debut drama Louise Wimmer is a bleak but dignified look at a struggling divorcee.
The IFI acknowledges the support of its principal funder, the Arts Council. The IFI French Film Festival is also supported by it's lead partner the Embassy of France in Ireland and secondary partners Airbus, the Alliance Française, CRH Europa Cinemas, Hennessy, Institut Français, The Irish Times, RTÉ, TV5 Monde and Unifrance Films.
(BMcC/GK)