The 49th César Awards, the French Oscars, gave victims of sexual violence an unprecedented place on Friday. Actress Judith Godrèche dreamed of a “revolution” amid a wave of freedom of expression in French cinema.
• Also read: France: Director Jacques Doillon wants to file a “defamation” complaint against Judith Godrèche
• Also read: #MeToo, “Anatomy of a Case”: What can we expect from the Caesars?
As a further symbol, the Césars awarded the trophy for best director for the second time in their history to a filmmaker, Justine Triet, for “Anatomy of a Fall.” The feature film dominated the evening with six trophies, including best picture, and gained new momentum ahead of the Oscars (March 10 in Los Angeles), for which there are five nominations.
“I would like to dedicate this Caesar to all women (…), those who succeed and those who fail, those who have been hurt and who free themselves by speaking and those who do not succeed,” explained the 45th -year-old director, the third filmmaker in history to win the Palme d'Or in May.
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But for once it wasn't the awards or honors that took center stage, but rather the speech by Judith Godrèche, who has become a leading figure in France's #MeToo.
To a standing ovation from representatives of a 7th art accused of reporting on the violence for years, the actress took the stage at the Olympia in Paris to denounce the “level of impunity, denial and privilege” in the area.
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“Why accept that this art that we love so much, this art that unites us, is being used as a cover for the illegal trafficking of young girls?” she asked.
“You have to be careful of little girls. They end up on the bottom of the pool, they collide, they hurt each other, but they jump back,” continued the actress, who filed a complaint against directors Benoît Jacquot and Jacques Doillon for sexual and physical violence during their youth, which the latter denies.
“Punks”
“The little girls are punks who come back dressed as hamsters (a reference to their Icon of French Cinema series on Arte, NLDR) and dream of a possible revolution,” she added. Again loud applause.
The contrast to the catastrophic Césars 2020 edition is striking. Roman Polanski, accused of rape, won the best director award for “J'accuse,” which resulted in the departure of actress Adèle Haenel.
The latter, who has since left the cinema, posted a photo from that evening on her social networks on Friday without comment.
The question of sexual violence arose from the opening remarks of the president of the ceremony, Valérie Lemercier: “I will not leave this stage without praising those who are shaking up the habits and customs of a very ancient world in which the bodies of some were silent. “ at the disposal of the bodies of others.
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Just as symbolically, the Academy awarded its first-ever award, the César for Best Supporting Actress, to Adèle Exarchopoulos for “I Will Always See Your Faces,” in which she plays an incest victim.
Before the ceremony, at the call of the CGT, around a hundred people demonstrated in front of the Olympia to support the words of the victims.
“All together we can really help things change and create a truly better world,” said actress Anna Mouglalis, who accused directors Philippe Garrel and Jacques Doillon of sexually abusing her.
“Collective blindness”
Also before the opening of the celebrations, French Culture Minister Rachida Dati complained in an interview with the magazine Le Film français about “years of collective blindness” in the industry.
“Creative freedom is complete, but here we are not talking about art, but about child crime,” she continued, referring to Judith Godrèche.
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Beyond these speeches, the issue still concerns French cinema, with several representatives affected by legal proceedings, such as Gérard Depardieu, accused of rape and sexual assault and who President Emmanuel Macron said at the end of 2023 that he was “making France proud “. “.
The president of the National Cinematography Center (CNC), Dominique Boutonnat, is also involved in a case of alleged sexual assault against his 21-year-old godson.
New calls to condemn violence were launched, notably by actor Aurélien Wiik, to free the voices of the boys who would have been victims, and outside the cinema Judith Godrèche said she had emailed more than 2,000 in four days Witness statements receive address that she opened for this purpose.
The winners
Here's the lowdown on the winners of the 49th César ceremony, which was dominated on Friday by Justine Triet's “Anatomy of a Fall,” winning six awards from 11 nominations.
Another favorite with 12 nominations, Thomas Cailley's “The Animal Kingdom,” won five Césars (best costumes, best sound, best visual effects, best original music and best photography).
Best film: “Anatomy of a Fall” by Justine Triet
Best Director: Justine Triet for “Anatomy of a Fall”
Best Actor: Arieh Worthalter for “The Goldman Trial”
Best Actress: Sandra Hülser for “Anatomy of a Fall”
Best Original Screenplay: Justine Triet and Arthur Harari for “Anatomy of a Fall”
Best Editing: Laurent Sénéchal for “Anatomy of a Fall”
Best Supporting Actor: Swann Arlaud in “Anatomy of a Fall”
Best Supporting Actress: Adèle Exarchopoulos in “I Will Always See Your Faces”
Male Revelation: Raphaël Quenard in “Scrapyard Dog”
Female Revelation: Ella Rumpf in “Marguerite’s Theorem”
Best first film: “Scrapyard Dog” by Jean-Baptiste Durand