- Gérardmer (Vosges) is hosting this Wednesday, and until Sunday, the 27th edition of the International Fantastic Film Festival.
- "This year is very interesting in terms of cinematography and scriptwriting," says Bruno Barde, the director of the event, to "20 Minutes", about the selection.
- This edition will also honor the directors of French genre films of the past thirty years.
Bruno Barde, the director of Gérardmer's International Fantastic Film Festival, likes to compare his selection with the great vintages: "There are good years and bad years ... Finally, I would rather say that there are years less interesting than others, ”he said at 20 Minutes . The 2020 vintage, which will be served in the Vosges city this Wednesday evening with Snatchers at the opening of the 27th edition, would rather be on the side of promising vintages. "This year is very interesting in terms of cinematography and scriptwriting," promises Bruno Barde.
With Asia Argento as president of the jury, there is reason to hope for a rock'n'roll record. The Italian is the first woman to hold this position in Gérardmer. "I didn't think of that," says the festival director. I have known her for a long time. We tried several times to get it, it was never available. She has talent in music, as an actress, as a director ... You would have to be a little silly to miss it. "
A "multifaceted" jury
The other members of the jury are "eclectic" to use Bruno Barde's words: the actress and director Arielle Dombasle, the actor Niels Schneider, the filmmakers Alice Winocour and Christophe Gans, the musicians Flavien Berger and Jean-Benoît Dunckel and the director of the Cinémathèque's programming, Jean-François Rauger. “I found it interesting that around Asia Argento there are multifaceted people. They are united by the love of cinema. The quality of a jury is always felt on the prize list. When it works well, it has a free spirit, it is open. When it is generous, it shows in the choice of films, ”says Bruno Barde.
The jury will be responsible for seeing the ten feature films in competition to establish their prize list, which they will unveil on Sunday evening. On paper, two observations. The first is that Anglo-Saxon films will be in a situation of virtual monopoly: three are American, two Irish, one British, while Canada will compete with two films, one in English, the other in French. . French chances will be defended by The Room , shot… in the United States and in English. Asia will be represented by Howling Village , landing under the Japanese banner.
Second observation: half of the feature films in competition are first films. Bruno Barde gets annoyed when he is pointed out. He assures us that this is not a deliberate choice. "Either a film is good or it is not good", he summarizes before explaining that this profusion of test shots shows "that there is a hunger for cinema": "A young man who has trouble setting up his project because there is no star in it, who fights to do it, will put an energy and a lot of himself into it. His film therefore has every chance of being if not successful, at least interesting and innovative. "
A beautiful set of filmmakers
This appetite for cinema also appears, it seems, on the side of the public. The number of registrations for the different sessions is reported to be up compared to last year. At the time of the balance sheet, the 2019 edition was pleased to have sold 40,000 tickets. If, this year, snow will not necessarily be at Gérardmer, the program already announces a rain of stars of genre cinema. Jan Kounen, Marc Caro, Alexandre Aja, Marina de Van, Alexandre Bustillo, Julien Maury, Coralie Fargeat or Xavier Gens will be present during a good part of the festival which will honor, with conference and retrospectives, thirty years of fantastic French style.
“Saturday evening, we will have around twenty people on the [Espace Lac] stage, directors who matter. It doesn't happen often, says Bruno Barde. When I called these directors one by one to ask them to come, I was very happy to have spontaneous yeses. They liked the idea of celebrating the genre they stand for. "
Culture
For the first time, a woman will chair the jury for the Gérardmer Festival
Culture
The Gérardmer Festival unveils the juries and films for the 2020 edition
- Asia Argento
- Horror movie
- Lorraine
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- Festival
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