Casting New York Vcu French Film Festival
RICHMOND, Va. – The 13th annual Virginia Commonwealth University French Film Festival, the largest French film festival in the United States, will present an unparalleled selection of feature films and shorts from France on April 1st – 3rd, 2005. The Festival is proud to screen the most recent and notable features films from established, award-winning directors and ground-breaking courts métrages (short films) by the next generation of filmmakers in France.
The VCU French Film Festival provides a connection for the American public to the finest French cinema, as well as an opportunity to speak with the directors and actors who created the films. A delegation of French directors and starring actors engage the audience in question and answer sessions following the screening of their films. Some notable delegation members will be among others, director Claude Miller, last year winner of two César Awards for the film La Petite Lili, actors Thierry Lhermitte and Philippe Torreton, just nominated for Best actor 2005 César Awards for the film L’équipier which will be part of our program.
Each year, the VCU French Film Festival offers a selection of twelve feature films and fourteen short films to the public, illustrating the diversity and richness of current French cinematographic production. Many of them will be American premiere. All movies have English subtitles. These distinguished and original films are a great success, attracting a large audience during the three-day festival. At this year's 13th annual festival, a tribute will be made to Jacques Villeret, who passed away January 28, 2005. The public will remember some of Villeret's films from our previous festivals, such as Les Enfants du marais, Un crime au paradis, Aller simple and Effroyables jardins presented during our last festivals, and will have the privilege to see two of his very last films : Vipère au poing and Malabar Princess during this year’s festival. The French cinema has a certain aura among lovers of French cinema who come from Virginia, Washington, D.C., Maryland,! the Carolinas, Pennsylvania and New York State to attend the festival. They appreciate the variety of films offered, ranging from comedies to historical or literary films, from reflective observations to new screenplays’ developments, and from sarcastic impertinence to the French poetic touch.
The VCU French Film Festival is showcased in the heart of Carytown, a destination shopping and cultural center in Richmond, at the historic Byrd Theatre at 2908 Cary Street. Last year, the Festival attracted a record-breaking 16,000 patrons made up of a diverse American public – film enthusiasts, families, art aficionados, teachers, and students.
The French Ambassador to the United States, Jean-David Levitte, decorated the Festival’s founders and directors, Peter Kirkpatrick and Françoise Ravaux-Kirkpatrick, at last year’s festival as “Chevaliers dans l’Ordre des Arts et des Lettres,” France’s highest honor in the arts. Other American recipients of the Knights in the Order of Arts and Letters include Nobel Laureate Toni Morrison, actors Robert Redford and Meryl Streep, historian Robert Paxton, and, most recently, director Steven Spielberg.
Dr. Peter S. Kirkpatrick is an associate professor of French at the VCU School of World Studies and the executive director of the Office of International Education at VCU. Dr. Françoise Ravaux-Kirkpatrick is a professor of French at the University of Richmond. They created the annual VCU French Film Festival 13 years ago.
In association with the Festival and Virginia Commonwealth University, a Master Class on Film Production will be taught by French Director and award-winner Claude Miller.