Emmanuel Mouret’s love triangle drama Love Affair(s) leads the nominations in France’s César awards this year, followed by Albert Dupontel’s Bye Bye Morons and Summer Of 85.
France’s Academy of Cinema and Arts and Sciences unveiled the nomination list for the 46th edition of the awards on its website on Wednesday morning, ahead of the ceremony scheduled to take place on March 12.
Scroll down for nominations list
Its traditional news conference in Fouquet’s restaurant in Paris was not possible this year as bars and restaurants are currently closed as part of France’s Covid-19 restrictions.
Love Affair(s) clinched 13 nominations including best film, director and screenplay. Camelia Jordana, who plays a pregnant young woman who gets unintentionally close to her partner’s cousin, was nominated for best actress while co-star Niels Schneider features in the best actor category and Vincent Macaigne is up for best supporting actor.
The film is proving a breakout awards title this year having previously clinched best film in France’s Lumière awards in January. It is actor and filmmaker Mouret’s 11th directing credit and follows 2018 costume drama Mademoiselle De Joncquières, which Netflix acquired and released worldwide under the title of Lady J.
Bye Bye Moron and Summer of 85 took 12 nominations each.
Director Dupontel directs and stars in comedy Bye Bye Morons opposite Virginie Efira, who plays a hairdresser on a quest to find the child she gave up for adoption as a teenager. The film enjoyed a successful but brief theatrical release in France in October, just before French cinemas were shut again due to a second wave of Covid-19. Its nominations also include best film, director and screenplay.
Nominations for Francois Ozon’s Normandy-set coming of drama Summer Of 85 also included best film and director as well as best screenplay adaptation (of Aidan Chambers’ 1982 novel Dance On My Grave).
Other films with multiple nominations included Caroline Vignal’s romantic comedy-drama My Donkey, My Lover & I (8), Sébastien Lifshitz’s Adolescents (6), Martin Provost’s How To Be A Good Wife (5), Maïwenn’s DNA (4) and Filippo Meneghetti’s The Two Of Us (4).
New look César Academy
The César academy is trying to turn a corner this year after a tumultuous 2020 awards season which saw its whole board resign amid criticisms over the lack of transparency, diversity and gender equality as well as a backlash over Roman Polanski’s inclusion in the race.
As part of its resulting overhaul, it elected its first gender-equal governing board in September for a two-year term. It is led by Véronique Cayla and Eric Toledano in alternating roles of president and vice president.
The ceremony for the 46th edition of the awards will take place as a socially-distanced event at the historic L’Olympia concert hall in Paris. Actress Marina Foïs will be the mistress of ceremonies alongside Roschdy Zem as president of the event.
”The world of culture has been hard hit by the health crisis that we’re going through. In the face of these unprecedented upheavals, there was no question was ignoring the films which came out this year,” Cayla and Toledano said in a joint statement.
”On adapting and reinventing ourselves, with the greatest respect for the hygiene restrictions, we will continue to celebrate, more than ever, the seventh art and its artisans.”
Nominations in key categories
Best Director
- Albert Dupontel, Bye Bye Morons
- Maïwenn, DNA
- Sébastien Lifshitz, Adolescents
- Emmanuel Mouret, Love Affair(s)
- François Ozon, Summer Of 85
Best Film
- Bye Bye Morons, Albert Dupontel
- Adolescents, Sebastien Liftshitz
- My Donkey, My Lover & I, Caroline Vignal
- Love Affair(s), Emmanuel Mouret
- Summer Of 85, François Ozon
Best screenplay
- Alberto Dupontel, Bye Bye Morons
- Caroline Vignal, My Donkey, My Lover & I
- Emmanuel Mouret, Love Affair(s)
- Filippo Meneghetti, Malysone Bovorasmy, Two Of Us
- Benoît Delépine, Gustave Kervern, Delete History
Best screenplay adaptation
- Olivier Assayas, Cuban Network
- Hannelore Cayre, Jean-Paul Salomé, Mama Weed
- François Ozon, Summer Of 85
- Stéphane Demoustier, The Girl With Bracelet
- Eric Barbier, Small Country: An African Childhood
Best Actress
- Laure Calamy, My Donkey, My Lover & I
- Martine Chevallier, Two Of Us
- Virginie Efira, Bye Bye Morons
- Camelia Jordana, Love Affair(s)
- Barbara Sukowa, Two Of Us
Best actor
- Sami Bouajila, A Son
- Jonathan Cohen, Enormous
- Albert Dupontel, Bye Bye Morons
- Neils Schneider, Love Affair(s)
- Lambert Wilson, De Gaulle
Best actress in a supporting role
- Fanny Ardant, DNA
- Valeria Bruni Tedeschi, Summer of 85
- Emilie Dequenne. Love Affair(s)
- Noémie Lvovsky, How To Be A Good Wife
- Yolande Moreau, How To Be A Good Wife
Best actor in a supporting role
- Edouard Baer, How To Be A Good Wife
- Louis Garrel, DNA
- Benjamin Lavernhe, My Donkey, My Lover & I
- Louis Garrel, DNA
- Vincent Macaigne, Love Affair(s)
- Nicolas Marié, Bye Bye Morons
Best female acting hope
- Mélissa Guers, The Girl With The Bracelet
- India Hair, Sexfish
- Julia Platon, Love Affair(s)
- Camille Rutherford, Felicita
- Fathia Youssouf, Cuties
Best male acting hope
- Guang Huo, Night Ride
- Félix Lefebvre, Summer Of 85
- Benjamin Voisin, Summer Of 85
- Alexandre Wetter, Miss
- Jean-Pascal Zadi, Tout Simplement Noir
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