the Media Release here - 5th Rendezvous With French

Media Release
5TH RENDEZVOUS WITH FRENCH CINEMA RETURNS
WITH A TOUCH OF THE CANNES FILM FESTIVAL
Singapore, 6 November 2015 – Rendezvous With French
Cinema returns to Singapore for its fifth edition with a film
line-up strongly influenced by this year’s Cannes Film
Festival. Set to once again engage and inspire Singapore
audiences with the best of French films, the 5th Rendezvous
with French Cinema emphasises the diversity of French
cinema with genres ranging from documentary, animation,
comedy, thriller to drama. The 5th Rendezvous With French
Cinema, through its selection of films, highlights recent
issues of significance to the international community as well
as deep personal issues that affect human relations.
GOLDEN VILLAGE - ALLIANCE FRANÇAISE - THE CATHAY CINEPLEX - SHAW THEATRES LIDO
with the support of
Organized by Institut Français de Singapour, the French Embassy, Alliance
Française de Singapour, and uniFranceFilms, the 5th Rendezvous with French
Cinema will be on from 04 to 13 December 2015, featuring twenty films across four
venues: Golden Village, Alliance Française, The Cathay Cineplex, Shaw Theatres
Lido.
Proudly supported by the Cannes Film Festival, the 5th Rendezvous with French
Cinema’s film line-up includes five films from the latest Cannes Film Festival – The
Measure of A Man (La loi du marché) by Stéphane Brizé, My King (Mon roi) by
Maïwenn, Valley of Love by Guillaume Nicloux, Ice and the Sky (La glace et le ciel)
by Luc Jacquet and Dheepan by Jacques Audiard.
The film, Dheepan, winner of the Palme d’Or at the Cannes Film Festival this year
will open the 5th Rendezvous with French Cinema. Directed by Jacques Audiard and
starring Vincent Rottiers and Marc Zinga, the film tells the story of a Sri Lankan Tamil
Tiger fighter who decides to flee the war in his homeland. Taking a woman and child
he does not know with him, he harbours hopes of getting political asylum in Europe.
The film underscores the current pressing issue of the ongoing migrant crisis that
Europe is facing, throwing up pertinent questions about cultural integration and
economic survival for migrants across several European cities. Dheepan also bears
relevance to audiences in Southeast Asia as the region grapples with the refugee
situation of the Rohingyas.
“Rendezvous with French Cinema has become the platform in Singapore to
showcase the diversity of French film culture. Today, through these films, it has also
become the stage from which attention is brought to issues of the day that are not
only relevant to France but to the international community as a whole. We proudly
present Dheepan as the opening film of the Festival as it is one such film that will
cause us to think deeply about migration issues and their humanitarian
consequences,” says H.E Mr Benjamin Dubertret, Ambassador of France to
Singapore.
The topic of climate change will also be highlighted at the Festival as it presents Ice
and the Sky (La glace et le ciel), a documentary about scientist Claude Lorius,
retracing his life’s journey in the Antarctic, from his first steps as a young glaciologist
to the crowning moment of his glittering career - winning the Blue Planet Prize, the
Nobel of environmental sciences. Ice and The Sky is an epic tale, in which science
and adventure meet. Directed by Luc Jacquet, the film tells the story through
extraordinary but very real landscapes, bringing forward environmental issues that
need to be urgently addressed. Ice and the Sky was the closing film of this year’s
Cannes Film Festival.
Other Cannes Festival highlights at the 5th Rendezvous with French Cinema include
the film My King (Mon roi) directed by Maïwenn, starring Vincent Cassel, Louis
Garrel and Emmanuelle Bercot who won the Best Actress award for her role in the
film. The Measure of a Man (La loi du marché) a film directed by Stéphane Brizé won
Vincent Lindon the Best Actor award. As for Valley of Love, directed by Nicolas
Nicloux, it reunited onscreen after 35 years, Isabelle Huppert and Gérard Depardieu
in a deeply moving metaphysical grief drama.
Young children and the young-at-heart will also have their choice of movies at the
Festival with films such as the animation movie, Mune, directed by Alexandre
Heboyan and Santa Claus! (Le Père Noël), directed by Alexandre Coffre, a
humorous and emotional comedy set in the splendid streets of Paris that will nicely
echo the festive spirit of the Christmas season.
5th Rendezvous with French Cinema is once again partnering with the Singapore
International Film Festival. Together, they will present two films - Microbe and Gasoil
(Microbe et Gasoil) and Breathe (Respire). Directed by Michel Gondry (who directed
the 2004 American film Eternal Sunshine of the Spotless Mind), Microbe and Gasoil
(Microbe et Gasoil) is a playful comedy starring screen darling Audrey Tautou.
Breathe (Respire) is directed by Mélanie Laurent, who is also best known for her role
in Quentin Tarantino’s Inglorious Basterds. Interestingly, Mélanie Laurent also
appeared in the film Rice Rhapsody by Kenneth Bi that was filmed entirely in
Singapore’s Chinatown in 2004.
5th Rendezvous with French Cinema will run from 4 December to 13 December. All
tickets will be available at S$13. Singapore Film Society members can enjoy the
festival films screening at Golden Village and The Cathay Cineplex at $12 and at
Alliance Française at $11. Alliance Française members can enjoy all screenings of
the festival films at Alliance Française at $11.
Please visit www.rendezvouswithfrenchcinema.sg for more information.
For media enquiries, please contact:
Phish Communications
Constance Goh
T: 65.6344 2960
M: 65.9673 9465
constance@phish-comms.com
Shirlene Noordin
T: 65.6344 2953
M: 65.9067 1255
shirlene@phish-comms.com