Aurel and Agnès Patron take home France’s highest film awards for best animated feature and short film at Friday night’s live Olympia concert hall ceremony.
France’s Academy of Cinema Arts & Sciences handed out prizes this past Friday at the 46th César Awards, the country’s highest film honors. The 2021 César Awards, the “Oscars” of France, took place in a live ceremony at Paris’ Olympia concert hall; the only attendees were nominees for the various awards. In a year rocked by continuing theatre closures and postponed productions in France due to the COVID-19 pandemic, the awards ceremony comes in the midst of turmoil in the French movie industry, which includes CNC president Dominique Boutonnat’s recent indictment on charges of alleged sexual assault and attempted rape made by his godson, which he denies.
To draw attention to industry woes and show support for French artists seeking government relief, actor Corinne Masiero stripped naked as she presented the award for Costume Design. The show kept the camera rolling; Twitter noted accordingly.
Josep, directed by Aurel and produced by Serge Lalou, took home the award for best animated film; The Bear Hour, directed by Agnès Patron and produced by Ron Dyens, took the award for best animated short film.
Josep beat out Calamity, A Childhood of Martha Jane Cannary, directed by Rémi Chayé and produced by Henri Magalon and Claire La Combe, and Little Vampire, directed by Joann Sfar and produced by Antoine Delesvaux and Aton Soumache.
The Bear Hour beat out Bach-Hông, directed by Elsa Duhamel and produced by Sophie Fallot, Shooom's Odyssey, directed by Julien Bisaro and produced by Claire Paoletti, and Head in the Nettles, directed by Paul Cabon and produced by Jean-François Le Corre and Mathieu Courtois.
The full list of nominees and winners for the 46th César Awards can be viewed online here.
Dan Sarto is Publisher and Editor-in-Chief of Animation World Network.
