France’s National Cinema Centre (CNC) has announced it is increasing the size of the country’s Oscar selection committee to reinforce its independence.
The move follows controversy over the CNC-run selection committee’s recent choices of film to represent France in the Best International Feature Film category.
Last year, there was major upset within the film industry after the committee selected period drama The Taste Of Things over hot favorite, Justine Triet’s Cannes Palme d’Or winner Anatomy of A Fall.
There was talk in the local industry at the time of covert lobbying against the film in response to Triet’s outspoken stance against the government of President Emmanuel Macron on receiving her Cannes prize.
The Taste Of Things failed to make it to the nomination stage, while Anatomy of a Fall enjoyed a buzzy awards season in Europe and the U.S., winning Best Original Screenplay at the 96th Academy Awards.
The CNC said the committee would be composed of eleven members and five substitutes, against the previous format of seven members.
The aim it said was to support the “collegiality” of the debates, diverse points of view and also better mask the secret votes of the members.
In another change, the committee members will be appointed for two years, instead of one.
In a final tweak, the head of the CNC will participate in the committee meetings as an observer, without a say in the final decision.
As in the past, the president of the cinema export body Unifrance, which supports the campaign of the selected film, will also participate in the selection meetings as an observer but will not have a say in the final vote.
“These three modifications will contribute to strengthening the independence of the commission, both with regard to public authorities and professional interests,” said CNC Director General Olivier Henrard.
He is also currently acting as president of the body following the departure of Dominic Boutonnat, who resigned last week after being found guilty of sexual assault charges brought by his godson.
The CNC said a president would be appointed from within the 11 members, who would have a casting vote in the event of an equal division of votes.
The members will continue to be appointed by France’s Minister of Culture, on the advice of the head of the CNC. They will be drawn from professionals working in the film industry and in accordance with the AMPAS regulations.
The selection process could still yet face controversy yet as France gears up to vote in the second round of parliamentary elections this weekend in which the far-right party National Rally is tipped to win the most seats in the country’s National Assembly lower house.
The party is not expected to clinch an absolute majority but the vote could still result in RN’s 28-year-old president Jordan Bardella becoming prime minister.
If this comes to pass, it will also have implications for the direction of travel of the Ministry of Culture, which also selects the head of the CNC. There is a possibility that the latter appointment will be sped through before a new government is installed, whatever is political persuasion.
The submission deadline for productions being put forward as a candidate to represent France at the 2025 Academy Awards is July 15.
Potential candidates this year include the breakout feel good hit A Little Something Extra, lavish swashbuckler The Count Of Monte Cristo and Jacques Audiard’s Spanish-language Cannes jury prizewinner Emilia Perez.
The commission will meet twice in September, firstly to select a short list of three to five films, and then to make a final choice on the feature that will be France’s Oscar submission.
France last won the international film Oscar with Régis Wargnier’s Indochine in 1993. Ladj Ly’s Les Misérables was the last French film to make it through to the final nomination stage in 2020, while Alice Diop’s Saint Omer made it onto the long-list of the 95th awards.
