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LES ARCS 2016

A full quiver for Les Arcs

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- Quality works of the present and the future for more than 500 European professionals at the 8th European Film Festival

A full quiver for Les Arcs
Connecting Zones by Rachida Brakni

Opened out of competition by Patients [+see also:
film review
trailer
film profile
]
 by Grand Corps Malade and Mehdi Idir (see article – to be released in France on 1 March 2017 by Gaumont), the 8th Les Arcs European Film Festival (being held from 10 to 17 December 2016) will, starting from tomorrow, bring together over 500 European film professionals (producers, distributors, sellers, regional funds, banks, distributors, exhibitors, film schools, festival representatives) in the alpine setting, a vast contingent that confirms the appeal of an event which showcases a large selection of the best European arthouse films out there now and prepares the works of tomorrow.

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Chaired by Romanian filmmaker Radu Mihaileanu, the feature film competition jury includes his German counterpart Sebastian Schipper, Icelandic actor Olafur Darri Olafsson, and four French filmmakers: director Catherine Corsini, actresses Mélanie Doutey and Mélanie Bernier, and composer Bruno Coulais. The short competition jury is being chaired by young director Antonin Peretjatko, and notably includes  Finnegan Oldfield, Alice de Lencquesaing and Audrey Estrougo.

Since it was announced a month ago, the selection (see article) has been enriched even further by titles such as Kills on Wheels [+see also:
film review
trailer
film profile
]
 by Hungarian director Attila Till, Connecting Zones [+see also:
trailer
film profile
]
 by Rachida BrakniLost in Paris [+see also:
film review
trailer
interview: Dominique Abel, Fiona Gordon
film profile
]
 by duo Fiona Gordon - Dominique Abel, Corniche Kennedy [+see also:
trailer
interview: Dominique Cabrera
film profile
]
 by Dominique CabreraElementary [+see also:
trailer
film profile
]
 by Hélène AngelWar on Everyone [+see also:
film review
trailer
film profile
]
by British filmmaker John Michael McDonagh, and The Confessions [+see also:
film review
trailer
interview: Roberto Andò
film profile
]
 by Italian director Roberto Ando in the Playtime section. Also worth mentioning in the Hauteur section are Afterimage [+see also:
film review
trailer
interview: Zofia Wichlacz
film profile
]
 by late Polish director Andrzej WajdaFour Days in France [+see also:
film review
trailer
film profile
]
 by Jérôme RaybaudThe Giant [+see also:
film review
trailer
interview: Johannes Nyholm
film profile
]
 by Swedish filmmaker Johannes Nyholm, and The Levelling [+see also:
film review
trailer
film profile
]
 by British director Hope Dickson Leach.

On Sunday 11 December, professionals will meet for the increasingly popular Work-in-Progress section (see news article and our interview with the artistic director of the festival, Frédéric Boyer), whilst the creators of the 20 projects chosen for the Co-production Village (see news article) and the six debut features pitched in the Film School Village will hold "one-to-one meetings" until 13 December. 

As part of its focus on Nouvelles femmes de Cinéma (lit. New women of film), which will bring together 10 European female directors (see article – it should be pointed out that Joyce A. Nashawati, the filmmaker behind Blind Sun [+see also:
film review
trailer
film profile
]
, will replace Veronica Franz), the Les Arcs Film Festival will also be organising a conference on Monday 12 December on the theme of "Is the market supporting the emergence of a new generation of female directors in Europe?", which will be debated by Anna Serner (director general of the Swedish Film Institute), Austrian filmmaker and producer Jessica Hausner, Frenchman Xavier Lardoux (director of film at the CNC), and Belgian producer Diana Elbaum (Entre Chien et Loup), who will present Boost Camp, a training programme reserved exclusively for female directors. The debate will be fuelled by the opening presentation of a study on the emergence of a new generation of female directors in Europe and the policies implemented in this area and in different European countries by national authorities.

There will also be a conference on Sunday 11 December on funding opportunities for co-productions with Quebec, which will focus on two case studies: Fatima [+see also:
film review
trailer
interview: Philippe Faucon
film profile
]
 by French director Philippe Faucon (Tanit Films and Possibles Media) and Mercy [+see also:
film review
trailer
interview: Fulvio Bernasconi
film profile
]
 by Swiss filmmaker Fulvio Bernasconi (Point Prod and 1976 Productions).

Finally, between 13 and 17 December, the Les Arcs Summit will gather together 16 independent French distributors, which will present their line-ups for 2017 to exhibitors. On the cards are the screening of 13 films, an abundance of trailers for the Atelier des sorties (lit. Releases workshop), a Laboratoire des Initiatives (lit. Laboratory of initiatives), and debates on concerns for theatres of tomorrow and the screening of European works.

That’s all without forgetting the now famous European Cinema Ski Cup, which sees film industry professionals battle it out on the snowy slopes, and is an integral part of the friendly appeal of a festival which forges solid alliances to support quality European films of tomorrow.

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(Translated from French)

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