Documentary Cesars of the year

Two documentaries based on the archival film materials got main documentary Cesars of the year.

The main documentary awards of the French L’Académie des Arts et Techniques du Cinéma went to Returning to Reims (Fragments)/Retours à Reims (Fragments) by Jean-Gabriel Périot and Les Films de Pierre and Maria Schneider, 1983 by Elisabeth Subrin and 5 à 7 Films.

The first one is based on the eponymous memoir by Didier Eribon, published in 2009, and narrates about the history of the French workers movement from the beginning of the 1950s through its rise to what is supposed to be today's decline.

The film is structured as a raw of personal stories – both of the new generation of Reims inhabitants and of the memoirs of the witnesses and participants of the historical events. But the intimate stories become a kind of refinement of the large-scale historical alterations which were taking place in France through almost seven decades.

The Cesar prizewinner in the short documentary nomination Maria Schneider, 1983 is a kind of homage to the legendary actress best known worldwide as Marlon Brando’s cinematic partner in the Last Tango in Paris by Roberto Bertolucci. The basement of the in-depth reflection on the social and political role of the creative person is an interview given by Mrs. Schneider to the TV program Cinéma Cinémas in 1983, when the talk drastically changed after the host’s question concerning The Last Tango in Paris. Mrs. Schneider’s response about the experiences of herself and other women in an industry dominated by men made a strong impact not only on the actress’s future career and personal destiny, but also on the functioning of the film industry.