Several actresses left the César awards ceremony in Paris after Roman Polanski, convicted of the statutory rape of a 13-year-old girl in 1977, won the prize for best director.
The awards – the French equivalent of the Oscars – were mired in controversy after an officer and a spy from Polanski received 12 nominations.
The Franco-Polish director fled the United States after his conviction for rape in the 1970s.
He has since faced other charges of sexual assault.
- The Polanski saga at slow fire
- The actress’s MeToo moment shocks French cinema
An officer and a spy, or J’accuse en français, talks about the Dreyfus affair in 19th century France and won a total of three awards on Friday evening.
Polanski and his crew did not attend the event, the manager said earlier that he feared for his safety.
The prize for the best film was awarded to Les Misérables by director Ladj Ly.
“Disgusted”
Actress Adèle Haenel, who said she was sexually abused in her childhood by another director, was one of the women who left the ceremony after the announcement of Polanski’s victory.
She left the room saying “shame!”, And was followed by director Céline Sciamma.
Actress and actress Florence Foresti, who appeared at the ceremony, did not return to the scene after the announcement of the Polanski Prize. She then updated her Instagram story on a black screen with the word “disgusted”.
A few hours before the start of the ceremony, the French Minister of Culture, Franck Riester, said that it would be “symbolically bad” for Polanski to win the prize for best director “, given the position we must take against violence sexual and sexist “.
Protesters also gathered outside the site before the awards ceremony.
What is the context?
The decision to honor Polanski at this year’s awards ceremony angered feminist groups and led to calls for a boycott.
The entire Caesar board of directors resigned earlier this month amid the aftermath. A general assembly is expected to be held after the ceremony to elect a new board of directors, which will review the implementation of reforms and the modernization of the institution.
The Minister of Equality of France, Marlène Schiappa, had previously condemned the decision to name the film by Polanski, saying that she found it “impossible for a room to rise and applaud the film of a man accused of rape at many times”.
But the Caesars defended the nominations, arguing that the body “should not take a moral position” at the awards ceremony.
Polanski himself told Paris Match in December that he had tried to distance himself from the boycott calls for his film. “For years, people have tried to pass me off as a monster. I’m used to slander and I have developed thick skin, which is as hard as a shell,” he said. declared.
In September, Polanski’s film won the Grand Jury Prize at the Venice Festival.
Two months later, however, former French actress Valentine Monnier charged Polanksi with “extremely violent” assault and rape in 1975, when she was 18, in the latest in a series of charges of sexual assault against the director.
Monnier said that the release of Polanski’s latest film prompted her to speak out.
Despite the controversy surrounding the film, J’accuse was a box office success in France in late 2019 and performed well in several other European countries.
This is not the first time that Cesar awards have been the subject of controversy because of Polanski. In 2017, he was chosen to lead the awards jury, but then resigned after this decision sparked outrage.
Polanski has French and Polish nationality, and has escaped various extradition attempts by the American authorities.
France – where he lives – does not extradite its own citizens. A Polish court also dismissed an American claim while filming in Krakow in 2015.
How are the Caesars awarded?
The César Academy, which has 4,680 film professionals, has also been criticized for being disconnected and dominated by older men.
Only 35% of the members are women and to participate, you must have had two sponsors and have been involved in three films in five years.
All members who have paid their subscription (4,313 this year) hold a secret online vote to decide which films should be nominated and, ultimately, which should win the awards. They are divided into categories including actors, directors and technicians.
The board of directors that oversees the academy, the Association for the Promotion of Cinema (APC), is made up of 47 members.
Unlike the Oscars and Baftas, however, members of the César Academy are unable to vote for the leadership of the CPA.
Several actresses left the César awards ceremony in Paris after Roman Polanski, convicted of the statutory rape of a 13-year-old girl in 1977, won the prize for best director.
The awards – the French equivalent of the Oscars – were mired in controversy after an officer and a spy from Polanski received 12 nominations.
The Franco-Polish director fled the United States after his conviction for rape in the 1970s.
He has since faced other charges of sexual assault.
- The Polanski saga at slow fire
- The actress’s MeToo moment shocks French cinema
An officer and a spy, or J’accuse en français, talks about the Dreyfus affair in 19th century France and won a total of three awards on Friday evening.
Polanski and his crew did not attend the event, the manager said earlier that he feared for his safety.
The prize for the best film was awarded to Les Misérables by director Ladj Ly.
“Disgusted”
Actress Adèle Haenel, who said she was sexually abused in her childhood by another director, was one of the women who left the ceremony after the announcement of Polanski’s victory.
She left the room saying “shame!”, And was followed by director Céline Sciamma.
Actress and actress Florence Foresti, who appeared at the ceremony, did not return to the scene after the announcement of the Polanski Prize. She then updated her Instagram story on a black screen with the word “disgusted”.
A few hours before the start of the ceremony, the French Minister of Culture, Franck Riester, said that it would be “symbolically bad” for Polanski to win the prize for best director “, given the position we must take against violence sexual and sexist “.
Protesters also gathered outside the site before the awards ceremony.
What is the context?
The decision to honor Polanski at this year’s awards ceremony angered feminist groups and led to calls for a boycott.
The entire Caesar board of directors resigned earlier this month amid the aftermath. A general assembly is expected to be held after the ceremony to elect a new board of directors, which will review the implementation of reforms and the modernization of the institution.
The Minister of Equality of France, Marlène Schiappa, had previously condemned the decision to name the film by Polanski, saying that she found it “impossible for a room to rise and applaud the film of a man accused of rape at many times”.
But the Caesars defended the nominations, arguing that the body “should not take a moral position” at the awards ceremony.
Polanski himself told Paris Match in December that he had tried to distance himself from the boycott calls for his film. “For years, people have tried to pass me off as a monster. I’m used to slander and I have developed thick skin, which is as hard as a shell,” he said. declared.
In September, Polanski’s film won the Grand Jury Prize at the Venice Festival.
Two months later, however, former French actress Valentine Monnier charged Polanksi with “extremely violent” assault and rape in 1975, when she was 18, in the latest in a series of charges of sexual assault against the director.
Monnier said that the release of Polanski’s latest film prompted her to speak out.
Despite the controversy surrounding the film, J’accuse was a box office success in France in late 2019 and performed well in several other European countries.
This is not the first time that Cesar awards have been the subject of controversy because of Polanski. In 2017, he was chosen to lead the awards jury, but then resigned after this decision sparked outrage.
Polanski has French and Polish nationality, and has escaped various extradition attempts by the American authorities.
France – where he lives – does not extradite its own citizens. A Polish court also dismissed an American claim while filming in Krakow in 2015.
How are the Caesars awarded?
The César Academy, which has 4,680 film professionals, has also been criticized for being disconnected and dominated by older men.
Only 35% of the members are women and to participate, you must have had two sponsors and have been involved in three films in five years.
All members who have paid their subscription (4,313 this year) hold a secret online vote to decide which films should be nominated and, ultimately, which should win the awards. They are divided into categories including actors, directors and technicians.
The board of directors that oversees the academy, the Association for the Promotion of Cinema (APC), is made up of 47 members.
Unlike the Oscars and Baftas, however, members of the César Academy are unable to vote for the leadership of the CPA.