The programme for the 17th edition of the flagship IFI French Film Festival which takes place this November, has been announced.

The IFI French Film Festival has attracted some of the most distinguished names in French cinema since its inception, including Juliette Binoche, Arnaud Desplechin, Jane Birkin, Anna Karina, Patrice Leconte, Jeanne Moreau, Nicolas Philibert, and Agnès Varda.

The 17th edition of Ireland’s largest celebration of French film will run for 12 days at the Irish Film Institute (IFI) from Wednesday, November 16th to Sunday, November 27th. This year’s programme features 23 Irish premieres, will be packed with special guests including Gustave Kervern, Benoît Delépine, Dominik Moll and Gilles Marchand, alongside a focus on French classics, including a 60th anniversary screening of Claude Lelouch’s A Man and a Woman.

Highlights of this year’s festival include the opening film, Justine Triet’s In Bed With Victoria, François Ozon’s period drama Frantz, The Unknown Girl from two-time Palme d’Or winners Jean-Pierre and Luc Dardenne, and 2016 Cannes Jury Prize winner It’s Only the End of the World, directed by Xavier Dolan.

Speaking at the programme’s launch, festival director Marie-Pierre Richard, commented, “French cinema this year yet again reveals the a tremendous variety of filmmakers that we like for the strength and vigour of their work, the uniqueness of their films and the talent and energy they bring to cinema. We are honoured to have so many wonderful and distinctive directors as our guests at this year’s festival. Our programme is filled with strong personal subjects addressed with singular cinematic vision, and arthouse films with big star casts. This is cinema richly experimenting with form, style and storytelling, giving us films full of life, diversity and inspiration!”

Once again, the IFI is delighted to welcome a number of very special guests to the festival. Writing-directing team Dominik Moll and Gilles Marchand will present two new films: News from Planet Mars and In the Forest, alongside a screening of their 2000 smash hit, Harry, He’s Here To Help; co-directors Benoît Delépine and Gustave Kervern will present popular comedy Saint Amour starring Gérard Depardieu (pictured above); actress Lola Créton will be in Dublin for the Irish premiere of Corniche Kennedy, while director Sébastian Betbeder will also present two new films, Marie and the Misfits and Journey to Greenland. Controversial military drama, The Stopover, winner of the Best Screenplay award at this year’s Cannes Film Festival, will screen with directors Delphine and Muriel Coulin in attendance.

Documentary highlights of the 2016 programme include a screening of Bertrand Tavernier’s unmissable epic A Journey Through French Cinema, while Cyril Dion and Mélanie Laurent’s César-winning Tomorrow examines projects looking to effect change on a social, ecological and economic level.

The stars of French cinema appear throughout this year’s programme with Gérard Depardieu also appearing in the odd-couple road movie Tour de France, Marion Cotillard, Léa Seydoux and Vincent Cassell all feature in Xavier Dolan’s It’s Only the End of the World, while legendary actor Jean-Pierre Léaud, star of Truffaut’s Les Quatre Cents Coups, portrays an ailing Louis XIV in The Death of Louis XIV.

The schedule for the 2016 IFI French Film Festival is as follows:-

WEDNESDAY, 16th NOVEMBER

20:00 OPENING FILM: IN BED WITH VICTORIA (VICTORIA)

THURSDAY, 17th NOVEMBER

18.10 THE INNOCENTS (LES INNOCENTES)
20.30 THE STOPOVER (VOIR DU PAYS)
The screening will be followed by a Q+A with directors Delphine and Muriel Coulin.

FRIDAY, 18th NOVEMBER

16.00 THE SON OF JOSEPH (LE FILS DE JOSEPH)
18.20 SAINT AMOUR
20.30 MERCENARY (MERCENAIRE)

SATURDAY 19th NOVEMBER

13.30 THE STOPOVER (VOIR DU PAYS)
13.40 A MAN AND A WOMAN (UN HOMME ET UNE FEMME)
The screening will be introduced by Dr Douglas Smith, Senior Lecturer, School of Languages and Literature, UCD.
15.40 FRANTZ
18.00 BEING 17 (QUAND ON A 17 ANS)
20.30 IT’S ONLY THE END OF THE WORLD (JUSTE LA FIN DU MONDE)

SUNDAY 20th NOVEMBER

13.00 TOMORROW (DEMAIN)
15.20 TOUR DE FRANCE
17.20 CORNICHE KENNEDY
The screening will be followed by a Q+A with actress Lola Créton.
20.00 CÉZANNE AND I (CÉZANNE ET MOI)

MONDAY 21st NOVEMBER

18.10 THE SON OF JOSEPH (LE FILS DE JOSEPH)
20.30 TOUR DE FRANCE

TUESDAY 22nd NOVEMBER

18.20 IT’S ONLY THE END OF THE WORLD (JUSTE LA FIN DU MONDE)
20.30 SAINT AMOUR

WEDNESDAY 23rd NOVEMBER

18.00 BEING 17 (QUAND ON A 17 ANS)
20.30 SLACK BAY (MA LOUTE)

THURSDAY 24th NOVEMBER

16.00 SAINT AMOUR
18.00 HARRY, HE’S HERE TO HELP (HARRY, UN AMI QUI VOUS VEUT DU BIEN)
The screening will be introduced by writer-director Dominik Moll and writer Gilles Marchand.
18.10 IN BED WITH VICTORIA (VICTORIA)
20.10 NEWS FROM PLANET MARS (DES NOUVELLES DE LA PLANÈTE MARS)
The screening will be followed by a Q+A with writer-director Dominik Moll and writer Gilles Marchand.

FRIDAY 25th NOVEMBER

16.00 MERCENARY (MERCENAIRE)
18.15 THE UNKNOWN GIRL (LA FILLE INCONNUE)
20.30 INTO THE FOREST (DANS LA FÔRET)
The screening will be followed by a Q+A with writer-director Gilles Marchand and writer Dominik Moll.

SATURDAY 26th NOVEMBER

13.00 A JOURNEY THROUGH FRENCH CINEMA (VOYAGE À TRAVERS LE CINÉMA FRANÇAIS)
13.20 MISS IMPOSSIBLE (JAMAIS CONTENTE)
15.20 THE STOPOVER (VOIR DU PAYS)
17.30 FRANTZ
20.00 JOURNEY TO GREENLAND (LE VOYAGE AU GROENLAND)
The screening will be followed by a Q+A with director Sébastian Betbeder.

SUNDAY 27th NOVEMBER

13.30 CASQUE D’OR
14.00 MARIE AND THE MISFITS (MARIE ET LES NAUFRAGÉS)
The screening will be introduced by director Sébastian Betbeder.
15.30 TOUR DE FRANCE
17.30 THE DEATH OF LOUIS XIV (LA MORT DE LOUIS XIV)
19.50 CLOSING FILM: 21 NIGHTS WITH PATTIE (21 NUITS AVEC PATTIE)

Tickets for the IFI French Film Festival are now on sale from the IFI Box Office on (01) 6795744 and may also be purchased online. Multi-ticket packages are also available for 5 and 10 films, only from the IFI Box Office – terms and conditions apply.

CONTACT DETAILS
IFI French Film Festival
6, Eustace Street
Temple Bar
Dublin 2

Tel: 01 679 5744 (Box Office)

All images courtesy IFI