The Cesar Awards, France’s equivalent to the Oscars and BAFTA’s, is unfolding this evening at the Olympia theater in Paris.
This 51st edition could have a Hollywood flavor with Richard Linklater’s “Nouvelle Vague,” a love letter to the French cinematic movement known as the New Wave, leading the race with 10 nominations.
Jim Carrey will also receive this year’s honorary Cesar award. The ceremony is hosted by French actor Benjamin Lavernhe and presided over by Camille Cottin (“Call My Agent!”).
Besides “Nouvelle Vague,” strong Cesar contenders include Carine Tardieu’s intimate drama “L’attachement,” Dominik Moll’s procedural “Case 137,” set during France’s yellow vests protests and Stéphane Demoustier’s “The Great Arch,” a historical drama starring Claes Bang, with eight nominations each. They’re followed by Hafsia Herzi’s queer coming-of-age story “The Little Sister,” which is in the running with seven noms, and Thierry Kliffa’s “The Richest Woman in the World,” a film loosely based on the 2010 Bettencourt Affair and starring Isabelle Huppert, with six nominations. “Arco,” Ugo Bienvenu’s poetic animated feature produced by Natalie Portman is nominated for four Cesar Awards, alongside Francois Ozon‘s “The Stranger,” an adaptation of Albert Camus’ classic.
The best international feature section boasts Paul Thomas Anderson’s “Once Battle After Another” will face off against Joachim Trier’s “Sentimental Value” and Oliver Laxe’s “Sirat,” alongside Kleber Mendonça Filho’s “The Secret Agent” and Guan Hu’s “Black Dog.”
More to come.