15/04/2016 - Delphine and Muriel Coulin with The Stopover and Stéphanie Di Giusto with The Dancer will make their debuts in the official selection

Four French majority productions and three minority productions will feature among the 17 feature films being screened in Un Certain Regard, an integral part of the Official Selection of the 69^th Cannes Film Festival (which will be held from 11 to 22 May 2016).

The Stopover [+see also:
film review
trailer
interview: Delphine and Muriel Coulin
film profile], the second feature film by sisters Delphine and Muriel Coulin, who were discovered in Critics’ Week at Cannes in 2011 with 17 Girls [+see also:
trailer
film profile], features Soko, Ariane Labed and Ginger Roman. An adaptation of the book of the same name by Delphine Coulin, the story centres around two military women who, like all soldiers coming back from Afghanistan, are given three days of ‘decompression leave’ at a five-star hotel in Cyprus. Produced by Denis Freyd for Archipel 35 (who co-produced the Dardenne brothers’ film, also in competition), The Stopover was made on a budget of €3.98 million, with Arte France Cinéma and Greek company Blonde. Pre-purchased by Canal+ and Ciné+, the film was also supported by an advance on receipts from the CNC and the fund providing aid to French-Greek co-productions. The film will be distributed in French theatres by Diaphana and international sales will be handled by Films Distribution.

The Dancer [+see also:
film review
trailer
film profile], the debut feature film by Stéphanie Di Giusto, will also have its world premiere in Un Certain Regard, and also features Soko as one of its main protagonists, alongside Mélanie Thierry, Gaspard Ulliel, Lili-Rose Depp, François Damiens, Louis-Do De Lencquesaing, Amanda Plummer and Denis Ménochet. Written by the director and Sarah Thibau, with the collaboration of Thomas Bidegain, the screenplay is based on the life of Loïe Fuller, an American who was the star of the Parisian cabaret scene of the Belle Époque at the beginning of the 20th century, up until she met Isadora Duncan, a young prodigy hungry for glory who hastens her fall from grace. Produced by Alain Attal for Les Productions du Trésor, The Dancer was made on a budget of €7.89 million, and was co-produced by Wild Bunch (which will release the film in France and take care of international sales), Belgian company Films du Fleuve, and Czech company Sirena Films. The film has been pre-purchased by Canal+ and Ciné+, and received an advance on receipts from the CNC. 

The selection also includes a third French majority production, animated film The Red Turtle [+see also:
film review
trailer
film profile], the debut feature film by Dutch-British filmmaker Michael Dudok de Wit, who wrote the screenplay with Pascale Ferran. The producers of the film include Wild Bunch (which will release the film in France on 29 June and will be handling international sales), Why Not Productions, Arte France Cinéma, CN4 Productions, Japanese company Studio Ghibli and Belgian company Belvision. The film has been pre-purchased by Canal+ and Ciné+, received support from Eurimages, the Gan Foundation, the Poitou-Charentes region and Wallimage in particular, and was executively produced by Prima Linea.

The 4^th majority production is Dogs [+see also:
film review
trailer
interview: Bogdan Mirica
film profile], the debut feature film by Romanian filmmaker Bogdan Mirica (produced on a budget of €850,000, 46% of which was provided by France via EZ Films with 32% coming from Romania and 26% coming from Bulgaria. The film has been pre-purchased by Canal+ and is being sold by Bac Films, which will also be releasing the film in France).

Les Productions du Trésor will also be represented in Un Certain Regard with minority production Pericle The Black [+see also:
film review
trailer
interview: Stefano Mordini
film profile] by Italian director Stefano Mordini, co-produced by Italy and Belgium on a budget of €2.98 million and starring Riccardo Scamarcio and Marina Foïs.

French minority productions being screened also include Clash [+see also:
film review
trailer
film profile] by Egyptian filmmaker Mohamed Diab (on a €1.47 million budget – co-produced by Sampek Productions and Arte France Cinéma – distribution in France and international sales: Pyramide), Apprentice [+see also:
trailer
film profile] by Singaporian filmmaker Boo Junfeng (co-produced by Cinéma Defacto - sold by Luxbox) and Harmonium [+see also:
trailer
film profile] by Japanese filmmaker Kôji Fukada (co-produced by Comme des Cinémas - distribution in France: Version Originale/Condor – being sold by MK2 International).

(Translated from French)