65th Edition of Critics Week: Award-Winning Films and Rising Stars
Marine Atlan's film "La Gradiva" was the winner of the Ami Paris Grand Prize at the 65th edition of Critics Week, while Aina Clotet's "Alive" received the Louis Roederer Foundation Rising Star Award. The section, curated by Ava Cahen, showcases first and second films. "La Gradiva," Atlan's debut feature, follows a French class trip to Pompeii, exploring the ruins and bodies petrified by the Vesuvio's eruption. Co-written by Atlan and Anne Brouillet, the film was previously awarded the Grand Prize at the 2024 Fondation GAN.
Aina Clotet's "Alive" tells the story of Nora, a 40-year-old woman seeking to feel alive through passionate relationships with two men. Shot in Catalan, Spanish, English, and French, the film delves into Nora's inner conflict through the contrasting natures of the men she encounters. Zou Jing's "A Girl Unknown," a poignant portrayal of abandoned young girls in China, received the Gan Foundation Award for Distribution, while Kosovo's "Dua" won the SACD Award.
Indian filmmaker Payal Kapadia presided over this year's Critics' Week, which opened with Phuong Mai Nguyen's animated feature "In Waves" and closed with Félix de Givry's "Goodbye Cruel World." The competition featured films from Europe, Mexico, Asia, the Middle East, Kosovo, and Yemen. The full list of Critics Week Awards includes the Ami Paris Grand Prize for "La Gradiva" and the Louis Roederer Foundation Rising Star Award for "Alive" by Aina Clotet.
Other awards presented during the event include the Sony Discovery Prize for Short Film to Romain F. Dubois for "Skinny Bottines," the Gan Foundation Award for Distribution to Zou Jing for "A Girl Unknown," the SACD Award to "Dua" by Blerta Basholli and Nicole Borgeat, and the Canal+ Award for Short Film to Berthold Wahju for "Vaterland" or a Bule Named Yanto.