The brainchild of the Franco-American Cultural Fund (FACF) — a unique collaborative effort among the Directors Guild of America, the Motion Picture Association, Société des Auteurs, Compositeurs et Editeurs de Musique (SACEM), and the Writers Guild of America, west — this year’s COL-COA festival presented 18 films and 18 short films, making it one of the largest events dedicated to French Cinema in the world.
On hand opening night to welcome the French delegation and France’s Ambassador to the United States, His Excellency Jean- David Levitte, were DGA Fifth Vice President Betty Thomas and DGA Board Member Michael Mann. (Mann represents the Guild on the FACF Board alongside DGA Secretary Treasurer Gilbert Cates and DGA National Executive Director Jay D. Roth.) They welcomed French filmmakers Yves Angelo, Maurice Barthelemy, Stéphane Brizé, Laurent Cantet, Olivier Nakache, and the opening night’s film director Francis Veber in a cocktail reception in the DGA Atrium. Also attending were FACF Board members Bernard Miyet (SACEM) and Dan Glickman (MPAA), WGA West president Patric Verrone, and Los Angeles Mayor Antonio Villaraigosa. “Ever since the invention of cinema by the Lumiere brothers and Edison, both of our cultures have shared a fascination with the lucid dream that is cinema and, particularly in France, a deep respect for its creators,” said Mann. “Tonight is a celebration of the bond between us.”
Opening the festival was the international premiere of Veber’s La Doublure (The Valet) an affectionately funny portrayal of love and deceit starring Daniel Auteuil, Kristen Scott-Thomas and Gad Elmaleh. Following the screening, Veber and Elmaleh participated in a Q&A moderated by DGA Board Member Taylor Hackworth. Other films screened during the week included: the LA Première of Stéphane Brizé's comedy/drama Je Ne Suis Pas La Pour Etre Aime (Not Here To Be Loved) followed by a Q & A with Brizé moderated by Western Directors Council member Brad Silberling; the Los Angeles Première of Brigitte Roüan's comedy Travaux, On Sait Quand Ca Commence... (Housewarming) with a Q & A with Roüan, moderated by DGA member Phil Alden Robinson; the North American Première of Gérard Pirès' adventure/drama Les Chevaliers Du Ciel (Sky Fighters) followed by a Q & A with Pirès moderated by DGA Board Member Carl Weathers; and the closing night World Premiere of Eric Tolédano and Olivier Nakache’s Ces Jours Heureux (Those Happy Days) which was followed by a Q&A with the filmmakers moderated by DGA Independent Directors Committee Chair Stephen Gyllenhaal. There were also screenings of short films and the North American première William Karel’s acclaimed documentary La Fille du Juge (My Dad is Into Terrorism). The festival also included several special events such as the “Salon VIP”, which provided a meeting point for industry people, sponsors and other VIPs to network; the ever popular Film Noir Night, and COL-COA Audience Award Day which featured reruns of all the short films screened at the festival, a 10th anniversary birthday tea party, and the presentation of the Audience Choice Film Award.This year’s COL-COA was also made possible with the support of UniFrance, the French Consulate in Los Angeles and Société Civile des Auteurs-Réalisateurs-Producteurs (L'ARP). Since its inception, the festival has steadily increased its audience, reaching more than 8,000 attendees last year.
