The France Culture Cinema Prize, in collaboration with Libération, was awarded to two female figures in cinema: Pascale Ferran, with a Commendation mention, and Haifaa Al-Mansour with a Revelation mention.
Pascale Ferran, a director and screenwriter, is awarded the “Commendation” mention for her entire body of work.
Pascale Ferran is currently editing her new film: BIRD PEOPLE. In 2005, she directed LADY CHATTERLEY, (a France Culture film) which received the Louis-Delluc prize and won five Césars in February 2007. In 2000, she directed the documentary SAM RIVERS/TONY HYMAS – FOUR DAYS IN OCOEE and led the French version of Stanley Kubrick’s EYES WIDE SHUT in 1999. In 1996, her film L’ÂGE DES POSSIBLES received the Grand Prize at the Belfort Festival, followed by the 7 d’Or for Best TV Film / 7 d’Or for Best Director in 1997. Her first film, PETITS ARRANGEMENTS AVEC LES MORTS, received the Caméra d’Or at Cannes and the Grand Prize at the Namur Francophone Film Festival in 1994.
The Saudi filmmaker Haifaa Al-Mansour is awarded the “Revelation” mention for her film “Wadjda.”
Haifaa Al-Mansour is the first female director from Saudi Arabia. In 2013, she directed “Wadjda”, (a France Culture film). She is considered one of the most significant cinematic figures in the Kingdom. After studying literature at the American University in Cairo, she obtained a master’s degree in film from the University of Sydney. The success of her first three short films, and her multi-award-winning documentary Women Without Shadows, helped raise the question of opening cinemas in the Kingdom. Within her country, her work is both admired and controversial, as it highlights topics considered taboo: tolerance, the dangers of orthodoxy, and the need for Saudis to have a critical view of the restrictive nature of their traditional culture. Through her films and her work in TV and print media, Al-Mansour is recognized for breaking the silence surrounding the closed lives of Saudi women and providing them a means to make their voices heard.
The France Culture Cinema Prize:
Created in 1999, the France Culture Cinema Prize has notably awarded Sandrine Bonnaire in 2008, Jacques Doillon in 2004, and Jean-Claude Biette in 1999. The laureates of the 2012 edition were Cédric Kahn, with a “Commendation” mention, and Pierre Schoeller, with a “Revelation” mention. Until 2005, the prize honored “The Filmmaker of the Year,” both French and foreign. Since 2006, the France Culture Cinema Prize is awarded to a cinema personality for the quality of their work or the strength of their commitment. This year, for the first time, France Culture partnered with Libération for the prize.
The jury for the France Culture Cinema Prize with Libération this year consisted of:
Gilles Jacob, President of the Cannes Festival For France Culture: Olivier Poivre d’Arvor, channel director, Sandrine Treiner, deputy director in charge of editorial, and the producers Laure Adler, Michel Ciment, Laurent Goumarre, Antoine Guillot, Arnaud Laporte, Marc Voinchet For Libération, Sylvain Bourmeau, deputy editorial director, and Didier Péron, head of the cinema section.
