Rewarded by the César for Best First Work for “Saint Omer”, filmmaker Alice Diop expressed her support for the directors from the stage of L’Olympia.
The absence of female directors among the nominees at the 48th Cesar Ceremony – a first since 2014 – is one of the highlights of this 2023 edition.
Rewarded by the César for Best First Work for Saint Omer, Alice Diop made a point of underlining this situation during her speech on the stage of L’Olympia by receiving her trophy, the day after her coronation at the Cléopâtre, a new alternative prize created at the initiative of the magazine Causette to protest against the absence of women in the Best Director category.
“I just wanted to say that I am proud to belong to a new generation of French filmmakers. This year I have seen extraordinary films that have made me think about the possibilities of cinema and I would like to mention here films that have completely inspired: films by Claire Denis, the film by Rebecca Zlotowski, the film by Mia Hansen-Love, the film by Alice Winocour, the film by Céline Devaux, by Blandine Lenoir… Thank you. , nor a fad. We are called upon to renew ourselves year after year, to grow. Thank you girls. Thank you for being there”.
At the microphone of AlloCiné, Virginie Efira had also reacted to this situation during the dinner of the nominees, which was held two weeks ago at Fouquet’s in Paris. “It’s hard not to say to yourself that despite all the progress generated there would be a form of collective unconscious on the idea that mastery is not purely feminine. I’m sure it resists. It’s to say that, even if we advance on women’s rights, there is a certain basic sexism, which does not only belong to men, which belongs to women and men. It can sometimes be a misogyny of the brain feminine. (…) We can put that in relation to the history of the Césars. I think only Tonie Marshall has had a César. It says something anyway. Wake up!”