French Film Awards ceremony during a politically obscured ceremony: the famous actress undressed on stage

In recent days, there has been a growing protest in France against the closure of cultural institutions, with activists and students occupying various theaters.

This disappointment was also a major theme during the cesarean section on Friday. The actress Corinne Masiero undressed on stage and presented the inscription “Without culture, without future” in the award for best costume.

And others who took the stage took the opportunity to oppose the government’s policy of not allowing cinemas to run from October, although most other companies could already reopen.

“My children can go to Zara, but not to the movies … It is incomprehensible,” said Stephane Demoustier, taking up the caesarean section at best for “The girl with the bracelet.

The tone was already set in the monologue at the beginning of the ceremony when host Marina Fois attacked Culture Minister Roselyne Bachelot.

“The minister did nothing … Mrs. Bachelot, you published a book with your recipe for pasta and gorgoncola,” the actress joked, and then sadly added: “We miss what unites us: the emotions we experience together.”

The ceremony was also overshadowed by memories of last year’s event, when the decision to award veteran Polish director Roman Polanski, accused of sexual assault and sex with a 13-year-old boy, led the stars to abandon the ceremony and the police had to use tear gas. to protest protesters outside.

In the wake of Polanski’s nominations for J’accuse (An Officer and a Spy), the entire Academy Board resigned prior to the 2020 Caesar Award ceremony. Many viewed Ms. Polanski’s nominations as proof of that the French film industry was not responding to the #MeToo women’s rights movement.

“Play fair”

This year’s first awards demonstrated that the Academy is willing to heed calls for greater ethnic diversity. The most promising actor and actress awards went to Jean-Pascal Zadi and Fathia Youssouf.

JP Zadi’s Tout Simplement Noir describes racist cliches about blacks in France, and 14-year-old Youssouf starred in Mignonnes, the controversial streaming giant Netflix, about teenagers under pressure from Senegalese society and social media.

“The game’s rules are changing; not so that the game ends, but in such a way that this time it is possible to play fair, “said presenter Roschdy Zemas at the beginning of the evening.

But the triumph of the evening awaited the comic drama “Goodbye, fools!” (Adieu les contras) about a seriously ill woman searching for a long-lost child. The film received seven awards, including Best Picture and Best Director, Albert Dupontel.

The foreign film award went to Dan Thomas Vinterberg for “Druk” with Mads Mikkelsen, who plays a drunken professor.

There were no controversies equal to last year’s noise about Polanski, but some pointed out that there is still a lot of work to be done on equality, with only one woman nominated in the best picture and best director categories.

Much of the drama took place behind the scenes this year as the Academy struggled to rebound and regain its reputation with a new board led by former Arte cultural television director Veronique Cayla and director Eric Toledano.