Cannes: ‘Love At First Fight’ Sweeps Directors’ Fortnight

The Directors’ Fortnight sidebar is actually non-competitive, but certain partners of the Société des Réalisateurs Français, the French directors’ body that organizes the event, attribute awards. Earlier today, international critics’ group FIPRESCI gave its prize in the section to France’s Les Combattants (Love At First Fight) by Thomas Cailley. This evening it has also taken the Art Cinema Award, the SACD Prize and the Europa Cinéma Label Prize. It’s notable that two of those went to a French film last year, Les Garçons Et Guillaume, A Table! which went on to big box office success in France as well as several Césars. Billed as “A love story. Or a story of survival. Or both,” the debut feature stars Adèle Haenel and Kevin Azaïs and releases in France on August 20. The Short Film prize was given to Sem Coraçao by Portugal’s Nara Normande and Tião with Special Mention for Trece Si Prin Perete by Radu Jude.