Non-English-language movies stormed the Oscars this year, with five films taking home statuettes — the most ever in one ceremony.
Justine Triet and Arthur Harari’s Best Screenplay Academy Award for French-language courtroom drama Anatomy of a Fall followed three past non-English-language winners: Bong Joon-ho’s Parasite (2019), Pedro Almodóvar’s Talk To Her (2002) and A Man and a Woman by Claude Lelouch and Pierre Uytterhoeven (1966).
The Best Sound Academy Award for Jonathan Glazer’s German-language Holocaust drama The Zone of Interest marked a first for a non-English-language film. The pic also clinched Best International Feature Film.
Related: ‘Oppenheimer’, ‘The Zone Of Interest’ & ‘Poor Things’ Wins Cap Good Night For Brits At The Oscars
The Best Animation Oscar for The Boy and the Heron marked a second Academy Award for Japanese animation maestro Hayao Miyazaki, who took co-directing credits with Toshio Suzuki.
Miyazaki previously triumphed in the category in its second year...
Justine Triet and Arthur Harari’s Best Screenplay Academy Award for French-language courtroom drama Anatomy of a Fall followed three past non-English-language winners: Bong Joon-ho’s Parasite (2019), Pedro Almodóvar’s Talk To Her (2002) and A Man and a Woman by Claude Lelouch and Pierre Uytterhoeven (1966).
The Best Sound Academy Award for Jonathan Glazer’s German-language Holocaust drama The Zone of Interest marked a first for a non-English-language film. The pic also clinched Best International Feature Film.
Related: ‘Oppenheimer’, ‘The Zone Of Interest’ & ‘Poor Things’ Wins Cap Good Night For Brits At The Oscars
The Best Animation Oscar for The Boy and the Heron marked a second Academy Award for Japanese animation maestro Hayao Miyazaki, who took co-directing credits with Toshio Suzuki.
Miyazaki previously triumphed in the category in its second year...
- 3/11/2024
- by Melanie Goodfellow
- Deadline Film + TV
Ginger & Fed, the new international film sales arm of Federation Studios headed by former TF1 Studio boss Sabine Chemaly, will launch several high profile titles at the Unifrance Rendez-Vous, including “The Future Awaits,” Niels Tavernier’s WWII-set drama based on the true story of a Holocaust survivor. Ginger & Fed will also bow sales on “Riviera Revenge,” a heartwarming comedy starring André Dussollier (“The Crime is Mine”), Sabine Azéma (“Tanguy”) and Thierry Lhermitte (“The Dinner Game”), along with continuing deals on “Rachel’s Game,” “Survive” and “Oldies and Goodies.”
Produced by Yves Darondeau at Bonne Pioche Cinema (“March of the Penguins”), “The Future Awaits” tells the story of Tauba Birenbaum, whose testimony was collected in July 1997 to become part of Steven Spielberg’s Institute for Visual History. The film opens in July 1942, during the Vel’ d’Hiv’ Roundup of Jewish families in Paris. 13-year-old Tauba and her parents, who are Polish Jews,...
Produced by Yves Darondeau at Bonne Pioche Cinema (“March of the Penguins”), “The Future Awaits” tells the story of Tauba Birenbaum, whose testimony was collected in July 1997 to become part of Steven Spielberg’s Institute for Visual History. The film opens in July 1942, during the Vel’ d’Hiv’ Roundup of Jewish families in Paris. 13-year-old Tauba and her parents, who are Polish Jews,...
- 1/15/2024
- by Elsa Keslassy
- Variety Film + TV
Eau-forte
Breaking onto the scene in the thick of the pandemic with 2020’s The Swarm (Critics’ Week selection), Just Philippot continues to find inspiration in the elements that surround us and from his own library lifting award-winning Sundance-selected short Acide for the long-form. Production on his sophomore film took place in March of last year, and with post work could resurface in Cannes. Guillaume Canet, Laetitia Dosch, Patience Munchenbach and Marie Jung are among the players the French filmmaker enlisted. Eau-forte (aka Blame in on the Rain) was produced by Yves Darondeau, Clément Renouvin, Jérôme Seydoux and Ardavan Safaee.
Gist: In the middle of a heat wave, an ominous cloud appears and with it, a lethal acid rain.…...
Breaking onto the scene in the thick of the pandemic with 2020’s The Swarm (Critics’ Week selection), Just Philippot continues to find inspiration in the elements that surround us and from his own library lifting award-winning Sundance-selected short Acide for the long-form. Production on his sophomore film took place in March of last year, and with post work could resurface in Cannes. Guillaume Canet, Laetitia Dosch, Patience Munchenbach and Marie Jung are among the players the French filmmaker enlisted. Eau-forte (aka Blame in on the Rain) was produced by Yves Darondeau, Clément Renouvin, Jérôme Seydoux and Ardavan Safaee.
Gist: In the middle of a heat wave, an ominous cloud appears and with it, a lethal acid rain.…...
- 1/17/2023
- by Eric Lavallée
- IONCINEMA.com
L.A.-based Outsider Pictures, one of the most avid U.S. distributors of Spanish-language movies, has picked up Chile’s Oscar entry “Blanquita.”
“It’s a critical look at a sordid part of Chilean social history, but also a political thriller that keeps you on the edge of your seat,” enthuses company’s founder and CEO Paul Hudson, who closed the deal, noting that the decision continues Outsider’s ongoing support of Latin-themed independent cinema.
The film, directed by Fernando Guzzoni, will be released theatrically in New York and Los Angeles on Dec. 9, 2022.
“Blanquita” celebrated its world premiere at Venice Film Festival in the Horizons section, scoring Guzzoni an award for best screenplay. It also won the Golden Colon for best film at Spain’s Huelva Latin America Film Festival.
Giancarlo Nasi of Quijote Films produced the affecting drama, with Pablo Zimbrón (Varios Lobos), Donato Rotunno (Tarantula), Pascal Guerrin,...
“It’s a critical look at a sordid part of Chilean social history, but also a political thriller that keeps you on the edge of your seat,” enthuses company’s founder and CEO Paul Hudson, who closed the deal, noting that the decision continues Outsider’s ongoing support of Latin-themed independent cinema.
The film, directed by Fernando Guzzoni, will be released theatrically in New York and Los Angeles on Dec. 9, 2022.
“Blanquita” celebrated its world premiere at Venice Film Festival in the Horizons section, scoring Guzzoni an award for best screenplay. It also won the Golden Colon for best film at Spain’s Huelva Latin America Film Festival.
Giancarlo Nasi of Quijote Films produced the affecting drama, with Pablo Zimbrón (Varios Lobos), Donato Rotunno (Tarantula), Pascal Guerrin,...
- 11/29/2022
- by Marta Balaga
- Variety Film + TV
Exclusive: Chile has submitted Fernando Guzzoni’s Blanquita, exploring a real-life child prostitution scandal that rocked the country in the early 2000s, as its official entry to the best international film category of the Oscars.
The film was chosen as Chile’s official entry by members of the Chilean Film Academy, in its third selection since its creation in 2018.
“Once again we are witnessing both the quality and diversity of our cinema, as well as the criteria and commitment of our partners: 70 of them voted in this process, the most participatory since we as an Academy have been in charge of choosing the film that represents Chile at the Oscars”, said the body’s executive director Josefina Undurraga.
Blanquita world premiered in the Horizons section of the Venice Film Festival this year, winning the best screenplay prize for Guzzoni.
Big screen debutant Laura López stars as an 18-year-old resident of a foster home,...
The film was chosen as Chile’s official entry by members of the Chilean Film Academy, in its third selection since its creation in 2018.
“Once again we are witnessing both the quality and diversity of our cinema, as well as the criteria and commitment of our partners: 70 of them voted in this process, the most participatory since we as an Academy have been in charge of choosing the film that represents Chile at the Oscars”, said the body’s executive director Josefina Undurraga.
Blanquita world premiered in the Horizons section of the Venice Film Festival this year, winning the best screenplay prize for Guzzoni.
Big screen debutant Laura López stars as an 18-year-old resident of a foster home,...
- 10/7/2022
- by Melanie Goodfellow
- Deadline Film + TV
Coinciding with its world premiere at the Venice Film Festival, Warsaw-based New Europe Film Sales has provided Variety with an exclusive peek at the trailer for Chilean writer-director Fernando Guzzoni’s (“Jesus”) thriller, “Blanquita.”
Based on the young witness at the center of the Spinak case, a scandal involving Chilean pedophilia and prostitution networks that rocked the country, the film grapples with morality and the struggle towards justice for those without means.
In the film, Blanca (Laura López) leads investigators, and the public, on a baffling journey as she plants herself at the center of a trial against powerful politicians.
“I think that what seduced me about the case is how a girl who was an outsider kept the entire Chilean community on edge for almost a year,” relayed Guzzoni.
“Her appearance in the case seemed very performative to me and how she, to some extent, built a character that...
Based on the young witness at the center of the Spinak case, a scandal involving Chilean pedophilia and prostitution networks that rocked the country, the film grapples with morality and the struggle towards justice for those without means.
In the film, Blanca (Laura López) leads investigators, and the public, on a baffling journey as she plants herself at the center of a trial against powerful politicians.
“I think that what seduced me about the case is how a girl who was an outsider kept the entire Chilean community on edge for almost a year,” relayed Guzzoni.
“Her appearance in the case seemed very performative to me and how she, to some extent, built a character that...
- 9/5/2022
- by Holly Jones
- Variety Film + TV
Around The World in 80 Days outfit Federation Entertainment has taken its second stake in a French production company of the year, acquiring 51% of Yves Darondeau and Emmanuel Priou’s March of the Penguins producer Bonne Pioche.
The deal covers all production activities, from development to delivery, as well as back office and international sales, with 30-staff outfit Bonne Pioche retaining full editorial freedom.
The company, whose name means “Good Call,” was founded in 1993 by Darondeau and Priou and has since launched subsidiaries Bonne Pioche Television, Bonne Pioche Cinema and Bonne Pioche Story.
Bonne Pioche has produced multi-genre hits such as Oscar-winning doc March of the Penguins and comedy We Are Family.
“Emmanuel and Yves are true craftsmen,” said Federation Founder Pascal Breton and CEO Lionel Uzan. “They and their teams are capable of developing the riskiest projects and turning them into success stories.”
The move comes just a few weeks...
The deal covers all production activities, from development to delivery, as well as back office and international sales, with 30-staff outfit Bonne Pioche retaining full editorial freedom.
The company, whose name means “Good Call,” was founded in 1993 by Darondeau and Priou and has since launched subsidiaries Bonne Pioche Television, Bonne Pioche Cinema and Bonne Pioche Story.
Bonne Pioche has produced multi-genre hits such as Oscar-winning doc March of the Penguins and comedy We Are Family.
“Emmanuel and Yves are true craftsmen,” said Federation Founder Pascal Breton and CEO Lionel Uzan. “They and their teams are capable of developing the riskiest projects and turning them into success stories.”
The move comes just a few weeks...
- 1/31/2022
- by Max Goldbart
- Deadline Film + TV
Federation Entertainment has acquired a majority stake in Bonne Pioche, the French production company behind the Oscar-winning documentary “March of the Penguins.”
Active in documentaries, animation and drama, Bonne Pioche will retain full editorial freedom and will parter up with Federation on development and production, as well as back office and international sales. The company’s workforce, which includes 36 staff members, will remain in place. Federation has a 51-percent stake in Bonne Pioche.
“We look forward to bringing together the best creators to nourish our original and diversified editorial content,” said Yves Darondeau and Emmanuel Priou, the co-heads of Bonne Pioche.
“We are very excited about this new stage in the life of Bonne Pioche. What drives us is our desire to be as close as possible to the talents we support. Bonne Pioche is defined by our team on one hand and the great diversity of our productions of documentaries,...
Active in documentaries, animation and drama, Bonne Pioche will retain full editorial freedom and will parter up with Federation on development and production, as well as back office and international sales. The company’s workforce, which includes 36 staff members, will remain in place. Federation has a 51-percent stake in Bonne Pioche.
“We look forward to bringing together the best creators to nourish our original and diversified editorial content,” said Yves Darondeau and Emmanuel Priou, the co-heads of Bonne Pioche.
“We are very excited about this new stage in the life of Bonne Pioche. What drives us is our desire to be as close as possible to the talents we support. Bonne Pioche is defined by our team on one hand and the great diversity of our productions of documentaries,...
- 1/31/2022
- by Elsa Keslassy
- Variety Film + TV
The Paris-based European Producers Club (Epc) has launched a gender equality charter for its members aimed at encouraging equal pay, opportunity and representation for women behind and in front of the camera.
The document addresses four key areas of interest: sexism and harassment, equal pay and access to responsibilities, talent and content.
The Epc is encouraging its 130 members to sign the charter on a voluntary basis and is also hoping national and European film institutions that work with its producers will also come on board too.
Its obligations range from arranging staff training around best practices to deal with sexism...
The document addresses four key areas of interest: sexism and harassment, equal pay and access to responsibilities, talent and content.
The Epc is encouraging its 130 members to sign the charter on a voluntary basis and is also hoping national and European film institutions that work with its producers will also come on board too.
Its obligations range from arranging staff training around best practices to deal with sexism...
- 2/11/2021
- by Melanie Goodfellow
- ScreenDaily
Echo Studio, the Paris-based international production firm dedicated to creating content with social impact, has set three new projects that are aimed to inspire change and action. The company, chaired by former Disney France chief Jean-François Camilleri, will co-produce the next feature film from Pascal Plisson, Once Upon A Time In Africa, and Anissa Bonnefont’s documentary Une Vie Volée (A Stolen Life), as well as develop three-part miniseries #Ourgirls about the 2014 kidnapping of the Chibok 276 schoolgirls in Nigeria.
Founded by Yves Darondeau and Emmanuel Priou, Serge Hayat and Camilleri, Echo Studio looks to raise global awareness of the century’s major issues via impactful films, series, TV movies, documentaries and dramas. Its first feature, Demain Est A Nous, directed by Gilles de Maistre and produced by Mai Juin Productions, was released in France in September 2019. Camilleri joined as Chairman one year ago in a re-team with Darandeau and Priou...
Founded by Yves Darondeau and Emmanuel Priou, Serge Hayat and Camilleri, Echo Studio looks to raise global awareness of the century’s major issues via impactful films, series, TV movies, documentaries and dramas. Its first feature, Demain Est A Nous, directed by Gilles de Maistre and produced by Mai Juin Productions, was released in France in September 2019. Camilleri joined as Chairman one year ago in a re-team with Darandeau and Priou...
- 7/1/2020
- by Nancy Tartaglione
- Deadline Film + TV
Following his departure from The Walt Disney Company, Jean-François Camilleri has joined the French production company Echo Studio as president. The Paris-based independent company was launched two years ago and is dedicated to producing internationally-driven content with political, social and environmental themes in a similar vein as Participant Media.
One of France’s most respected industry figures, Camilleri was executive vice president and country manager for The Walt Disney Company France, Benelux and French-speaking Africa; he also founded and ran the distribution label Disneynature. He started working for Buena Vista International in 1990, and shortly after participated in the creation of Gaumont Buena Vista International in Paris.
At Echo Studio, Camilleri will develop Echo Studio activities, including content production, distribution, social impact campaigns, digital and experiences.
Following Jean-François’ departure from Disney, it seemed natural for us to ask him to join Echo Studio adventure as our partner and as President. His...
One of France’s most respected industry figures, Camilleri was executive vice president and country manager for The Walt Disney Company France, Benelux and French-speaking Africa; he also founded and ran the distribution label Disneynature. He started working for Buena Vista International in 1990, and shortly after participated in the creation of Gaumont Buena Vista International in Paris.
At Echo Studio, Camilleri will develop Echo Studio activities, including content production, distribution, social impact campaigns, digital and experiences.
Following Jean-François’ departure from Disney, it seemed natural for us to ask him to join Echo Studio adventure as our partner and as President. His...
- 7/3/2019
- by Elsa Keslassy
- Variety Film + TV
Echo Studio, the Paris-based company behind Rodd Rathjen’s Panorama drama “Buoyancy,” is set to produce “Walking on Water,” the feature debut of Dakar-born French actress Aissa Maiga, Sabrina Van Tassel’s “A Death Foretold” and “Food” (working title), a culinary documentary from famed French chef Jean Imbert.
Echo Studio, which launched at Cannes last year with first-look deals with Walt Disney France and the sales outfit Charades, was created to develop and produce fiction and non-fiction films and series that carry political, social and environmental themes and are meant to have a global appeal, in a similar vein as Participant Media.
Currently in development, “Walking on Water” will follow Maiga for over a year in a Nigerian village that has suffered water shortage and shed light on the transformation of the village with the arrival of clean water.
” ‘Walking on Water’ will be a poetic and cinematic African fable...
Echo Studio, which launched at Cannes last year with first-look deals with Walt Disney France and the sales outfit Charades, was created to develop and produce fiction and non-fiction films and series that carry political, social and environmental themes and are meant to have a global appeal, in a similar vein as Participant Media.
Currently in development, “Walking on Water” will follow Maiga for over a year in a Nigerian village that has suffered water shortage and shed light on the transformation of the village with the arrival of clean water.
” ‘Walking on Water’ will be a poetic and cinematic African fable...
- 2/10/2019
- by Elsa Keslassy
- Variety Film + TV
NEW YORK -- The Fox & the Child, Luc Jacquet's follow-up to his monster hit documentary March of the Penguins, has been acquired for U.S. distribution by Picturehouse.
Jacquet's fable combines narrative storytelling with docu footage to tell the tale of a young girl who follows a fox into the woods outside her home. Based on Jacquet's experiences as a child, the English-language film will use an adult female narrator to relate the events as her childhood story.
Picturehouse president Bob Berney said that because there is very little onscreen dialogue, he may hire a well-known actress to provide the voiceover and shoot her in new scenes for the feature.
The $13 million-plus feature began principal photography last March in France, Italy and Romania after some initial nature shoots, and the filmmakers hope to complete it in time for this May's Festival de Cannes. The Bonne Pioche film is produced by Yves Darondeau, Christophe Lioud and Emmanuel Priou, the team behind Penguins.
Jacquet used a combination of real foxes and a trained fox to work with the young star, Bertille Noel-Bruneau.
Jacquet's fable combines narrative storytelling with docu footage to tell the tale of a young girl who follows a fox into the woods outside her home. Based on Jacquet's experiences as a child, the English-language film will use an adult female narrator to relate the events as her childhood story.
Picturehouse president Bob Berney said that because there is very little onscreen dialogue, he may hire a well-known actress to provide the voiceover and shoot her in new scenes for the feature.
The $13 million-plus feature began principal photography last March in France, Italy and Romania after some initial nature shoots, and the filmmakers hope to complete it in time for this May's Festival de Cannes. The Bonne Pioche film is produced by Yves Darondeau, Christophe Lioud and Emmanuel Priou, the team behind Penguins.
Jacquet used a combination of real foxes and a trained fox to work with the young star, Bertille Noel-Bruneau.
- 3/13/2007
- The Hollywood Reporter - Movie News
NEW YORK -- Bonne Pioche, the Oscar-winning production team behind March of the Penguins, is focusing on the journey of another flock of birds in the rockumentary Amen Birdmen: Across the Atlantic, chronicling a French band's trek toward success across the U.S. Producers Yves Darondeau, Christophe Lioud and Emmanuel Priou and helmer Yannis Mangematin recently have begun tracking the band Amen Birdmen for a year as they tour the states. The production has garnered unrestricted access to the band's activities as they meet with record executives, publishers and DJs along the way. "In a country where even french fries are ridiculed, does a French rock band even stand a chance?" Darondeau said of the humorous English-language docu.
- 3/13/2006
- The Hollywood Reporter - Movie News
PARK CITY -- The man behind last year's biggest Sundance success story, March of the Penguins director Luc Jacquet, said that his follow-up will be The Fox & the Child, a project combining nature documentary footage and a fictionalized story. Penguins producers Yves Darondeau, Christophe Lioud and Emmanuel Priou, along with producer Bonne Pioche, Will Shepherd the $13 million-plus film, scheduled for a yearlong shoot beginning in March and aiming for a December 2007 completion date. Production will take place in France, Italy and Romania. "Fox" centers on a young girl and her friendship with the eponymous animal. An adult female narrator will relate the tale as a memoir of her childhood.
- 1/22/2006
- The Hollywood Reporter - Movie News
What is it about the emperor penguin and its home in the bitterly inhospitable terrain of the Antarctic that makes us stare slack-jawed with wonder? Surely this is one of nature's oddest creations. This creature, a bird actually, is both comical and noble in appearance. Once it leaves its natural home in the coastal sea, the penguin must struggle to accomplish any task on the icy land. Yet the stoic, resolute heroes and heroines of Luc Jacquet's March of the Penguins captivate the viewer.
Warner Independent, which acquired the French documentary at this year's Sundance Film Festival, has added a new Alex Wurman score and an English-language narration by Morgan Freeman for the American market. (The film opened Jan. 26 in Paris.) Gone is the gimmick of actors providing dialogue for the penguins. Instead the American release reverts to the purity of the birds staring at each other or gazing silently on their precious chicks, leaving the viewer to intuit the emotional context. Wurman's upbeat music is a major plus, attentive to the humor and gravity of penguins' traditional mating ritual.
Jacquet insists upon viewing this almost suicidal ritual as a "love story." The anthropomorphic approach might put off a biologist, but who can deny the close bond between mates necessary to produce and protect a single egg or the agony suffered by a parent when a chick is lost?
After filming in 16mm over a daunting 13 months in conditions that only can be imagined, the director and his editor, Sabine Emiliani, shape the footage into a compelling tale of survival, an annual race against time on which the survival of the species itself depends. When the birds turn 5, they leave behind the relative safety of the food-filled sea as the polar winter descends each March. They trek single-file for more than 70 miles on their feet or sliding on bellies to their traditional breeding ground. Here males and females pair off. (The film never tells us what happens to those without a mate.)
As the weather worsens, the female produces a single egg. In a delicate juggling act that often fails, the female must transfer the egg to the male for safeguarding on the top of his feet and beneath a fold of warm flesh and feathers. The egg cannot otherwise survive as the temperature drops to 80 below and winds can exceed 100 mph. Starved and exhausted, the females trek back to the sea to fill their bellies for the newborn. Meanwhile, the males huddle together, going 125 days without food, waiting for the eggs to hatch and their mates to return with food. Many females do not return, falling victim to the exhausting march or predators such as the leopard seal.
If and when the females do return and a chick has survived -- both are big ifs -- it is now the famished fathers' turn to stagger back to the sea for food. This cycle continues until the young can make the journey to the coast and take their first dive into the Antarctic waters. Surprisingly, at least to those who buy into the "love story," the family unit now breaks apart. The young penguin might never see its parents again, and parents rarely mate a second winter.
Jacquet's crews, filming underwater and in a white wasteland that looks like a frozen Monument Valley, get amazingly close shots of the birds battling the elements. Only at the end credit roll do we glimpse the crew in action, clumsily setting up their tripods and being observed with curiosity by the penguins. Perhaps the film is a love story, after all. What else can explain the dedication of these crazy French filmmakers?
MARCH OF THE PENGUINS
Warner Independent Pictures
Warner Independent and National Geographic Features films present a Bonne Pioche production in association with Wild Bunch
Credits:
Director: Luc Jacquet
Narration: Jordan Roberts
Based on a screenplay by: Luc Jacquet, Michel Fessler
Producers: Yves Darondeau, Christophe Lioud, Emmanuel Priou
Executive producer: Ilann Girard
Directors of photography: Laurent Chalet, Jerome Maison
Music: Alex Wurman
Editor: Sabine Emiliani
Narrator: Morgan Freeman
MPAA rating: G
Running time -- 80 minutes...
Warner Independent, which acquired the French documentary at this year's Sundance Film Festival, has added a new Alex Wurman score and an English-language narration by Morgan Freeman for the American market. (The film opened Jan. 26 in Paris.) Gone is the gimmick of actors providing dialogue for the penguins. Instead the American release reverts to the purity of the birds staring at each other or gazing silently on their precious chicks, leaving the viewer to intuit the emotional context. Wurman's upbeat music is a major plus, attentive to the humor and gravity of penguins' traditional mating ritual.
Jacquet insists upon viewing this almost suicidal ritual as a "love story." The anthropomorphic approach might put off a biologist, but who can deny the close bond between mates necessary to produce and protect a single egg or the agony suffered by a parent when a chick is lost?
After filming in 16mm over a daunting 13 months in conditions that only can be imagined, the director and his editor, Sabine Emiliani, shape the footage into a compelling tale of survival, an annual race against time on which the survival of the species itself depends. When the birds turn 5, they leave behind the relative safety of the food-filled sea as the polar winter descends each March. They trek single-file for more than 70 miles on their feet or sliding on bellies to their traditional breeding ground. Here males and females pair off. (The film never tells us what happens to those without a mate.)
As the weather worsens, the female produces a single egg. In a delicate juggling act that often fails, the female must transfer the egg to the male for safeguarding on the top of his feet and beneath a fold of warm flesh and feathers. The egg cannot otherwise survive as the temperature drops to 80 below and winds can exceed 100 mph. Starved and exhausted, the females trek back to the sea to fill their bellies for the newborn. Meanwhile, the males huddle together, going 125 days without food, waiting for the eggs to hatch and their mates to return with food. Many females do not return, falling victim to the exhausting march or predators such as the leopard seal.
If and when the females do return and a chick has survived -- both are big ifs -- it is now the famished fathers' turn to stagger back to the sea for food. This cycle continues until the young can make the journey to the coast and take their first dive into the Antarctic waters. Surprisingly, at least to those who buy into the "love story," the family unit now breaks apart. The young penguin might never see its parents again, and parents rarely mate a second winter.
Jacquet's crews, filming underwater and in a white wasteland that looks like a frozen Monument Valley, get amazingly close shots of the birds battling the elements. Only at the end credit roll do we glimpse the crew in action, clumsily setting up their tripods and being observed with curiosity by the penguins. Perhaps the film is a love story, after all. What else can explain the dedication of these crazy French filmmakers?
MARCH OF THE PENGUINS
Warner Independent Pictures
Warner Independent and National Geographic Features films present a Bonne Pioche production in association with Wild Bunch
Credits:
Director: Luc Jacquet
Narration: Jordan Roberts
Based on a screenplay by: Luc Jacquet, Michel Fessler
Producers: Yves Darondeau, Christophe Lioud, Emmanuel Priou
Executive producer: Ilann Girard
Directors of photography: Laurent Chalet, Jerome Maison
Music: Alex Wurman
Editor: Sabine Emiliani
Narrator: Morgan Freeman
MPAA rating: G
Running time -- 80 minutes...
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