The FIFF in Namur comes to an end – a key event for the future of French cinema
The 33rd Namur International Francophone Film Festival closed on Friday, October 5 after a week of multinational Francophone cinematic experiences. The last event was the Bayards’ award ceremony, followed by a preview screening of Louis-Julien Petit’s film « Les Invisibles », in the presence of the producer Liza Benguigui, actress Déborah Lukumuena and actor Quentin Faure.
The program included 159 films from all over the Francophonie, including Cambodia (« Les tombeaux sans noms » by Rithy Panh), Quebec (« Charlotte a du fun » by Sophie Lorain), Romania (« Alice T. » by Radu Muntean) and France (« L’heure de la sortie » by Sébastien Marnier).
The opening evening focused on Belgian cinema with « Nos batailles » by Guillaume Senez, who came to Namur accompanied by Romain Duris, Lena Girard Voss and Basile Grunberger. The festival presented several films in preview, such as « La chute de l’empire américain » by Denys Arcand (Quebec), « Voyez comme on danse » by Michel Blanc (France), « Le Jeu » by Fred Cavayé (France) or « Léopold, Roi des Belges » by Matthieu Collard and Cédric Vandresse (Belgium).
Many festival-goers came to attend Lambert Wilson’s public meeting, Coup de Cœur of this 33rd edition, hosted by Eric Russon. The French actor also presented three films from his filmography, including his new film « Au bout des doigts » by Ludovic Bernard.
The public of Namur was also able to meet other numerous guests such as Jean-Paul Rouve, Romain Duris, Virginie Efira, Olivier Gourmet, Niels Schneider, Laurent Lafitte, Pierre Salvadori, Stijn Coninx, Sébastien Houbani, Camille Vidal-Naquet, Adèle Haenel, Michel Blanc, Karin Viard, Jan Decleir, Stéphane De Groodt, and many other well-known film producers.
Many professionals of the 7th art also participated in the FIFF Pro, the professional part of the festival, including Dans les traces d’Atelier Grand Nord, Génération Talents! l’Actu des pros and the Manufacture de Namur. The Festival in Namur welcomed more than 250 guests and nearly 400 journalists to enter the best of French-speaking cinema.
The Festival awarded various prizes that combined a total amount of nearly 80,000 €. Thierry Klifa chaired the Official Long Films Jury while Delphine Lehericey led the Official Short Films Jury.
Film lovers are already expecting the 34th edition of the Namur International Francophone Film Festival, which will take place from 27 September to 4 October 2019.
