In keeping with such a momentous year, this beloved event will once again unveil a thrilling selection of contemporary French cinema, guaranteed to captivate and stimulate audiences around the country.

Presented by the Alliance Française in association with the Embassy of France in Australia and Unifrance Films, the 2020 season will screen at Palace Cinemas and affiliate locations throughout March and April, encompassing 8 cities and 4 satellite locations.

Celebrating his 4th year as Artistic Director, Philippe Platel, has spent the past 12 months reviewing hundreds of films in order to select the superlative array of 49 features and documentaries, along with 2 thrilling television shows, that form this year’s programme – many of which will be screening in Australia for the first time.

Showcased via 9 distinct categories with expressively piquant headings such as ‘Eternal Odyssey,’ ‘Intense & Unsettling,’ ‘The Voice of the Countryside,’ ‘Magnetic Love,’ and ‘City of Lights,’ the 2020 line-up has a strong emphasis on social engagement and altruistic endeavours. These qualities are depicted in films such as the multi-award-winning Les Misérables, Ladj Ly’s searing snapshot of corruption and simmering tensions in modern-day Paris; School Life, a comedy/drama set within a Saint Denis high school; Invisibles, which follows the unorthodox antics taken by an illegal women’s shelter to avoid closure; Oh Mercy!, a darkly compelling exposé of the human condition as observed by a police chief in Northern France; the poignant rural drama, In the Name of the Land, starring Guillaume Canet as a farmer battling to maintain his dignity in the face of incessant setbacks, and many more extraordinary films.

In times of social, environmental and political uncertainty, cinema also looks to heroic figures for inspiration, a trend which is echoed via themes ranging from space travel (Proxima and How to Become an Astronaut); fairytale princes (The Lost Prince and Donkey Skin),political leaders (Alice and the Mayor and Savages); submarine soldiers (The Wolf’s Call)and spirits (Zombi Child).

High on the list of 2020 highlights is the international premiere of director Martin Provost’sHow to Be a Good Wife. Set at a time when women were still expected to be largely subservient, this delicious comedy stars the luminous Juliette Binoche as the pristine head of a housekeeping school who, when faced with adversity, takes her first steps towards emancipation.

There’s also the hotly anticipated La Belle Époque, which tells the story of Victor (Daniel Auteuil) a disillusioned man who is given the opportunity to relive the great love-affair of his youth, and the whimsically romantic Notre-Dame – shot before last year’s horrific fire – about an architect who wins a competition to redesign the Notre-Dame esplanade – a movie which, given events of the past year, is now considered visionary.

Breathing life into this cinematic cornucopia will be a host of France’s most electrifying actors, including Fanny Ardant, Vincent Cassel, Romain Duris, Emmanuelle Bercot, Bérénice Bejo, Jean Dujardin, Fabrice Luchini, Noémie Lvovsky, Eva Green, Jacques Perrin, Gaspard Ulliel, Roshdy Zem, Léa Seydoux, Yolande Moreau, Xavier Dolan, Virginie Efira, Sandrine Kiberlain, François Cluzet, Gilles Lellouche, Laurent Lafitte, Christophe Lambert, Mathieu Kassovitz, Virginie Ledoyen and Ludvine Sagnier, who will feature in films directed by, amongst others, Christophe Honoré, Zabou Breitman, Xavier Dolan, Martin Provost, Olivier Nakache, Éric Toledano, Guillaume Canet, Erwan Le Duc, Rémi Bezançon, André Téchiné, Cédric Kahn, Dominik Moll, Arnaud Desplechin, Cédric Klapisch, Michel Hazanavicius, and Yvan Attal.

And in celebration of its 50th anniversary, the Festival will present a restored version of the aforementioned, Donkey Skin, a luscious fairy-tale musical from legendary New-Wave director Jacques Demy, featuring a soundtrack by Michel Legrand and starring the eternal Catherine Deneuve who headlines four films in this year’s programme.

National dates and venues for the 2020 Alliance Française French Film Festival are:

SYDNEY: 10 March – 8 April
Palace Norton Street, Palace Verona, Chauvel Cinema, Palace Central & Hayden Orpheum Cremorne

MELBOURNE: 11 March – 8 April
Palace Balwyn, Palace Brighton Bay, Palace Cinema Como, Palace Westgarth, Kino Cinemas & The Astor Theatre

PERTH: 11 March – 8 April
Palace Raine Square, Cinema Paradiso, Luna on SX, Windsor Cinema & Camelot Outdoor Cinema

CANBERRA: 12 March – 8 April
Palace Electric Cinema

ADELAIDE: 17 March – 14 April
Palace Nova Eastend Cinemas, Palace Nova Prospect Cinema

BRISBANE: 18 March – 14 April
Palace Barracks & Palace James Street

HOBART: 19 – 28 March
State Cinema

AVOCA BEACH: 19 March – 1 April
Avoca Beach Picture Theatre

PARRAMATTA: 26 – 29 March
Riverside Theatres Parramatta

BYRON BAY: 31 March – 12 April
Palace Byron Bay

BENDIGO: 17 – 19 April
Star Cinema

BALLARAT: 17 -19 April
Regent Cinemas
www.affrenchfilmfestival.org

The full festival line-up will be released on Thursday January 31st with tickets on-sale the same day through www.palacecinemas.com.au. The Festival promises to be more passionate, more emotional, more dramatic, more French than even before with over 50 films and special events showcasing the best of French cinema.

Mark January 31st in your diary and keep March & April completely free so you can take full advantage of this amazing cinematic event! We are excited to share more details about the Festival with you over the coming weeks!

Alliance Française French Film Festival
Sydney – 5 March – 10 April 2019
Melbourne – 6 March – 10 April 2019
Canberra – 7 March – 10 April 2019
Perth – 13 March – 10 April 2019
Brisbane – 14 March – 14 April 2019
Hobart – 14 March – 23 April 2019
Adelaide – 21 March – 18 April 2019
www.affrenchfilmfestival.org

Winner of the Best Director and Best First Feature awards at the Venice Film Festival 2017, Xavier Legrand’s heart-stopping drama CUSTODY charts a family’s struggles with the fallout of divorce.

Miriam (Léa Drucker, The Blue Room) and Antoine (Denis Ménochet, The Returned) have recently separated and while their 17-year-old daughter Josephine (Mathilde Auneveux) is able to decide living arrangements for herself, Miriam is desperate to keep her 11-year-old son Julien (Thomas Gioria) away from his father.

But the magistrate rules in favour of joint-custody, and suddenly the boy is thrown directly into the middle of an escalating parental conflict, where it seems inevitable that sides must be chosen.

Superbly observed and flawlessly acted (the heartrending performances of the two children are more than worth the price of admission), Legrand’s precise dissection of this family dynamic masterfully builds into a pulse-pounding thriller. Honest, yet still evoking profound sympathy for all its protagonists, CUSTODY is sure to be remembered as one of the most important and vital films of 2018.

Custody will open in cinemas nationally on September 27, 2018.
www.palacefilms.com.au/custody

Belle and Sebastian, Friends for Life brings the conclusion to the trilogy of films and has all the ingredients for a classic family yarn. Good guys and girls, a despicable bad guy, unconditional love, a struggle to overcome and ultimately a victory and bittersweet happy ending.

Set in the high mountains of the French Alps, life for young Sebastian is idilic after the dramas on the first two films. That is until his father and newly married step-mother let slip of their plans to move from their small village to Canada.

This film will be a worthwhile experience for young viewers as the sub titles, though challenging highlight what a rich sounding language French is and the appeal of simple country life is also well presented. The canine actors keep the tricks to a minimum so their roles are quite enjoyable, clever but not too cute.

Rob Hudson
https://www.facebook.com/IconFilmDistribution.Au/

Palace Films’ next release, Aurore, will open in cinemas nationally on May 17, 2018!

Fifty-year-old Aurore Tabort (Agnès Jaoui, The Taste of Others), separated from her husband and newly unemployed, discovers she is to become a grandmother. She feels as if her own life has come to a standstill and is slowly being pushed away to the fringes of society.

Revered as a national treasure in France, and known as the 15th-century ‘Mona Lisa of the Middle Ages’ The lady and the unicorn tapestry cycle will be making its exclusive appearance in Australia at the Art Gallery of NSW through a generous and exceptional loan from the collection of the Musée de Cluny – Musée national du Moyen Âge in Paris.

The six large tapestries each depict a richly costumed lady flanked by that most mysterious animal, the unicorn, with jewel-like millefleur (‘thousand flowers’) backgrounds. The tapestries present a vivid meditation on earthly pleasures and courtly love. They can also be viewed as an allegory of the five senses – sight, hearing, taste, touch and smell – plus a sixth ‘internal’ sense – heart, desire or will – which was widely known at the time.

With an engaging program of events and activities for all ages, and a specially designed digital experience, a visit to The lady and the unicorn will allow a close encounter with one of the world’s greatest treasures.

This exhibition is made possible with the support of the NSW Government through its tourism and major events agency, Destination NSW.

The Lady and the Unicorn Exhibition
Art Gallery of NSW
10 February – 24 June 2018
www.artgallery.nsw.gov.au

Modern life as he experienced it in nineteenth-century Paris provided Degas with a repertoire of motifs he explored with endless variation and innovation; from scenes of work and industry to ballet and the theatre, racecourses and boudoirs.
 

 
This sweeping exhibition brings together more than 200 works by Degas from dozens of collections worldwide, offering a fresh and dynamic reappraisal of this legendary artist’s genius.

Degas – A New Vision Exhibition
24 June – 18 September 2016
NGV International, Melbourne
www.ngv.vic.gov.au

The annual Alliance Française French Film Festival is a collaboration between the Embassy of France in Australia and six Alliances Françaises across Australia. It is not only the biggest film festival in Australia; it is also the biggest festival of French films outside of France.

Each year, it curates a selection of the best contemporary French films, including comedies, dramas, documentaries and much more. Blockbusters and independent films alike screen over six weeks in eight cities: Sydney, Melbourne, Adelaide, Canberra, Brisbane, Byron Bay, Perth and, for the first time this year, Hobart. The Festival also includes glamorous opening nights, Q&As and special events with renowned figures of French cinema.

There is beautiful, ongoing romance between French culture and Australia, never more in evidence than with Australians’ love of French cinema. The Alliance Française French Film Festival is the central celebration of this romance.

The 2015 Patrons, Margaret and David, have kindly decided to honour the Festival with their expertise by selecting 7 films from the line-up. Here are their picks:

MARGARET’S PICKS
3 Hearts by Benoît Jacquot
Far From Men by David Oelhoffen
The Last Hammer Blow by Alix Delaporte
DAVID’S PICKS
Diplomacy by Volker Schlöndorff
The Blue Room by Mathieu Amalric
Tokyo Fiancée by Stefan Liberski
Grand Illusion by Jean Renoir

There will be many more fantastic movies at the 2015 Festival, check out the official website for more information!

Alliance Française French Film Festival 2015
SYDNEY 3-22 March 2015
MELBOURNE 4-22 March 2015
ADELAIDE 5-24 March 2015
CANBERRA 6-25 March 2015
BRISBANE 13 March – 1 April 2015
PERTH 19 March – 7 April 2015
BYRON BAY 9-14 April 2015
HOBART 16-21 April 2015
www.affrenchfilmfestival.org

Thanks to Madman Entertainment we have five double in season passes to give away to is Dior and I –  a tantalising ‘behind-the-seams’ glimpse at the making of Raf Simons’ first haute couture collection for Christian Dior in 2012!

Dior and I is a tantalising ‘behind-the-seams’ glimpse at the making of Raf Simons’ first haute couture collection for Christian Dior in 2012. Established in the fashion world as a minimalist designer, Simons has both his reputation and the legacy of Dior on the line when appointed Creative Director of the iconic Parisian brand. With only eight weeks to complete the collection, Simons and his dedicated group of collaborators work against time to make his vision a sublime reality. Melding the everyday, pressure-filled world of fashion with mysterious echoes from Dior’s past, the film is also a colourful homage to the long-serving seamstresses at the couturier, as history is once again created at Dior.
www.diorandimovie.com

Competition will be drawn 25 March 2015, winners will be notified by mail.

The film has experienced great success at the French box office and has also been selected to screen at the Alliance Francaise French Film Festival 2015!

Samba migrated to France 10 years ago from Senegal, and has since been plugging away at various lowly jobs. Alice is a senior executive who has recently undergone a burnout. Both struggle to get out of their dead-end lives Samba’s willing to do whatever it takes to get working papers, while Alice tries to get her life back on track until fate draws them together.
www.transmissionfilms.com.au
[contact-form-7 id=”2037″ title=”Samba Competition Form”]

Competition will be drawn 01 April 2015, winners will be notified by mail.