19/11/2020 - The Les Arcs Film Festival has unveiled the programme for its 12th edition, which will unspool online between 12 – 19 December, as well as in cinemas as soon as circumstances allow

Forced to reinvent itself on account of the health crisis, and having already announced the hybrid form of its Industry Village (read our article), the Les Arcs Film Festival has now unveiled the programme for its 12th edition, which will unfold online between 12 – 19 December with physical screenings set to take place as soon as French cinemas re-open (in the Bourg-Saint-Maurice Valley, and elsewhere in France as part of the new Hors Piste Cinéma programme).

Stealing particular focus on this year’s guest of honour roll call is the Polish filmmaker Agnieszka Holland, who will also be the ambassador of the festival’s Talent Village, as well as the recipient of the 7th Femme de Cinéma award. Belgian actor Jérémie Rénier and French directorial duo Éric Toledano and Olivier Nakache are also set to be celebrated.

The 10 feature films battling it out for the 2020 Crystal Arrow will be assessed by a jury presided over by the French filmmaker and actress Zabou Breitman, who will flanked by director Sophie Letourneur, actor Vincent Macaigne, his colleague (who’s now also a filmmaker) Nicolas Maury and composer Amine Bouhafa.

Including five French premières, the competition concocted by artistic director Frédéric Boyer will showcase Last Days of Spring [+see also:
film review
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interview: Isabel Lamberti
film profile] by Spain’s Isabel Lamberti, Preparations To Be Together For An Unknown Period of Time [+see also:
film review
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interview: Lili Horvat
interview: Natasa Stork
film profile] by Hungary’s Lili Horvát, Honey Cigar [+see also:
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interview: Kamir Aïnouz
film profile] by the French-Algerian director Kamir Aïnouz, Quo Vadis, Aida? [+see also:
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interview: Jasmila Žbanić
film profile] by Bosnian filmmaker Jasmila Zbanic, After Love [+see also:
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interview: Aleem Khan
film profile] by Brit Aleem Khan, Apples [+see also:
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interview: Christos Nikou
film profile] by Greece’s Christos Nikou, Shorta [+see also:
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interview: Anders Ølholm and Frederik …
film profile] by Danish helmers Anders Ølholm and Frederik Louis Hviid, The Whaler Boy [+see also:
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interview: Philipp Yuryev
film profile] by Russian director Philipp Yuryev, the documentary Collective [+see also:
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film profile] by Romania’s Alexander Nanau, and Rascal [+see also:
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interview: Peter Dourountzis
film profile] by French filmmaker Peter Dourountzis.

Jostling within the Playtime line-up, we find Thou Shalt Not Hate [+see also:
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interview: Mauro Mancini
film profile] by Italy’s Mauro Mancini, I Never Cry [+see also:
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interview: Piotr Domalewski
film profile] by Poland’s Piotr Domalewski, Charlatan [+see also:
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interview: Agnieszka Holland
film profile] by Agnieszka Holland, Hope [+see also:
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interview: Maria Sødahl
film profile] by Norway’s Maria Sødahl, Austrian production Lovecut [+see also:
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film profile] by Iliana Estanyol and Johanna Lietha, My Wonderful Wanda [+see also:
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interview: Bettina Oberli
film profile] by Swiss director Bettina Oberli, Nightlife [+see also:
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film profile] by German filmmaker Simon Verhoeven, Sputnik by Russia’s Egor Abramenko and Av: The Hunt du Turc coming courtesy of Emre Akay.

The Hauteurs section, meanwhile, will treat audiences to the Kosovan film Andromeda Galaxy [+see also:
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interview: More Raça
film profile] by More Raca, Schoolgirls [+see also:
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interview: Pilar Palomero
film profile] by Spain’s Pilar Palomero, Charter [+see also:
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interview: Amanda Kernell
film profile] by Swedish director Amanda Kernell, County Lines [+see also:
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film profile] by British filmmaker Henry Blake, No Hard Feelings [+see also:
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interview: Faraz Shariat
film profile] by his compatriot Faraz Shariat, Father [+see also:
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interview: Srdan Golubović
film profile] by Serbia’s Sdran Golubović, and the documentaries Helmut Newton: The Bad and the Beautiful [+see also:
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interview: Gero von Boehm
film profile] by Germany’s Gero von Boehm and Punta sacra [+see also:
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interview: Francesca Mazzoleni
film profile] by Italian director Francesca Mazzoleni.

On offer in the category of French premières are Simple Passion [+see also:
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interview: Danielle Arbid
film profile] by Danielle Arbid, A Good Man [+see also:
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film profile] by Marie-Castille Mention-Schaar, Margaux Hartmann [+see also:
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interview: Ludovic Bergery
film profile] by Ludovic Bergery and the documentary I Have Been Waiting for You [+see also:
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film profile] by Stéphanie Pillonca, while the Youth Screenings section includes Calamity, A Childhood of Martha Jane Cannary [+see also:
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interview: Henri Magalon
film profile] by Rémi Chayé and Wolfwalkers [+see also:
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film profile] by Irish duo Tomm Moore and Ross Stewart.

Another line-up on the festival agenda is a Focus section intitled “Déplacer Les Montagnes” (“Move Mountains”) which revolves around the theme of social engagement and consists of nine films, including Sow the Wind [+see also:
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interview: Danilo Caputo
film profile] by Italy’s Danilo Caputo and, in documentary terms, the Romanian-Austrian production Wood [+see also:
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film profile] by Michaela Kirst, Monica Lãzurean-Gorgan and Ebba Sinzinger, Douce France [+see also:
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film profile] by French director Geoffrey Couanon and I Am Greta [+see also:
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interview: Nathan Grossman
film profile] by Swede Nathan Grossman.

Meanwhile, a new section named Hors Piste Cinéma (initiated in partnership with Benshi, La Vingt-Cinquième Heure, the Lux Audience Award and the European Film Academy) is asking French cinemas to register before 23 November to get the chance to draw from a selection of ten feature films (including Teddy [+see also:
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film profile] by Ludovic and Zoran Boukherma) appearing within Les Arcs’ 2020 selection, with a view to screening them as soon as movie theatres re-open in France, up until 31 January.

Well worth a final mention is the short films jury, which will be presided over by actress Karin Viard (flanked by her colleague Noée Abita, the director Charlène Favier, actor Grégory Fitoussi, filmmaker Guillaume Senez and producer Stéphanie Carreras), not to mention the many events and conferences hosted by the festival, such as the Cinema Green Lab, the Femmes de Cinema Lab and the Music Village, all organised in the most inventive manner possible, in accordance with developments in the ongoing health crisis.

(Translated from French)