In recent years, the César Academy has been the subject of much criticism after appointing artists accused of, among other things, rape or sexual abuse. Summary of various controversies.
Cesar’s Academy saves his skin. In the uproar following the Sofiane Benasser case, the French Film Institute decided on Monday, January 2, to withdraw people accused of “acts of violence” from its next ceremony. Hence, from now on, if one of the nominees is accused or convicted of acts of violence (particularly of a sexual or sexist nature), they cannot be invited to the awards ceremony, nor to any of the events assigned to them. The Academy, however, remains opaque during the award ceremony, but the a priori accused, although absent, may still be awarded.
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The Academy’s latest statement is, in any case, the first step in moving away from the controversy surrounding recent editions. Because when it comes to embarrassing controversies, we must give back to Caesar what is Caesar’s. The ceremonies that have taken place since 1976 have not always gone smoothly. We take into account.
1986. The Kiss of the Gainsbourgs
The moment of embarrassment at the 1986 ceremony when Cesar was announced as the best female hopeful. On the screen, Serge Gainsbourg, cigarette in hand, kisses the lips of his daughter Charlotte, who won an award for her role; the cheeky one. An evening that Jane Birkin, whom we see kissing her 15-year-old daughter ever so briefly, noted in Volume 2 of her diary: Post Scriptum: , where he described Gainsbourg as “flying like a quince” even before the ceremony began. Charlotte Gainsbourg talks about this period of her life in the magazine M: as a “hard life for a child” thing. “He made me go too far, do things that worried me,” she adds. It’s a safe bet that a scene like this would cause quite a stir today.
1994. Lucini et al “tremendous” tenacity
Fabrice Lucini led the 1994 César Award for Best Film alongside actress Clementine Cellarie. The latter came on stage in a body-hugging dress with a basket neckline. An outfit that prompted a somewhat lengthy sequence in which the actor stared intently at the actress’ breasts, licking her lips and touching her arms after affectionately commenting, “That’s huge.” A moment of hilarity for the public at the time, which we watch today with gritted teeth.
2017: President of Polanski’s Caesars
Considered a fugitive in the United States since 1977 after the rape of a minor and accused of sexual violence by eleven other women, the director was elected president of the 42nd.e Caesar ceremony. While he had already been honored twice by the Academy (in 1980 and 2003), his nomination caused a stir. A petition for his recall was started, which was signed more than 60,000 times. Laurence Rossignol, then Minister for Women’s Rights, even denounced the “indifference to the facts of which she is accused” and “a kind of intelligence about rape”. General indignation, which eventually convinced the director to resign.
2020: Polanski’s Coronation, “Rise and Break”
While in 2019 the photographer Valentin Monier testified in turn against Roman Polanski, the Franco-Polish filmmaker had canceled his visit to the Cesars. But despite the controversy, 45e The ceremony, which took place on February 28, 2020, honored him with the best director award for his film. I blame. This coronation prompted actress Adele Hanel to leave the room chanting “shame”. That example was followed by Celine Siamma, Noemi Merlant, Aisa Maiga and others, and the mistress of the ceremony, Florence Foresti, did not return to the stage after the announcement of the result. Meanwhile, anger rumbled through the ranks of feminist activists gathered outside the Salle Pleyel for the occasion. A moment captured by author Virginie Despentes as “the most beautiful image in forty-five years of ceremony,” turning this sequence into a mantra, in her “Deliverance” pulpit; “Now we rise and break.”
In the video, feminist activists demonstrate on the sidelines of Cesar 2020
2020: Brissot ‘forgotten’ by tribute to the dead
At this same ceremony on February 28, 2020, the Academy aired its traditional retrospective honoring the men and women of cinema who have died over the past twelve months. Jean-Claude Brisson, director white wedding and: secret things In 2005, he was sentenced to one year in prison for sexual harassment and died in March 2019. He was dismissed from office. A decision that angered his colleague Lisa Heredia, who described this omission as “stabbing, spitting, second death”.
2023: an edition that still raises questions
After two seemingly quieter ceremonies following the Covid-19 crisis, highlighted by Corinne Masiero’s shocking exit, naked on stage in 2021 to defend the condition of intermittent workers, the French Film Institute is back in its little shoes. The November 23 revelations about the indictment of Sofiane Benasser for “rape” and “spousal abuse” had the effect of a bombshell. The charges against the protagonist almond trees Valeria Bruni Tedeschi led to his quick removal from the 2023 list of male revelations.
The new shelving policy, which was revealed on January 2 and echoes the case, remains very moderate, however. Those involved in Acts of Violence can always get an award like Gerard Depardieu. The actor, who has been accused of rape and sexual assault since December 2020, can be nominated for his film. Maigret:. If they awarded him, he would simply be deprived of stage presence and speech.
Source: Le Figaro
