TAFFF Docs 2024

THE AMERICAN FRENCH FILM FESTIVAL ANNOUNCES DOCUMENTARY AND SERIES LINEUPS FOR EVENT TAKING PLACE IN LOS ANGELES OCTOBER 29-NOVEMBER 3

5 Documentary Films and 11 TV Series to Compete for TAFFF’s Documentary and Series Awards 2024

Encompassing a wide range of topics and genres, The American French Film Festival (“TAFFF”), is announcing another eclectic mix of documentaries and TV series in this year’s Festival. Produced by The Franco-American Cultural Fund, the 28th annual event takes place at the DGA Theater Complex October 29-November 3. The five documentary titles and 11 series to be screened during the Festival will also be eligible for the 2024 American French Film Festival Documentary and Series Awards. 

The 5 DOCUMENTARIES in competition for the TAFFF Best Documentary Award 2024 are:

A Family / Une famille  (Written and directed by Christine Angot)  Award-winning French writer Christine Angot is invited for business to Strasbourg where her father had lived and died several years ago. It’s the city where she met him at the age of 13 for the first time, and he started to rape her. His wife and children still live there. Angot takes a camera, and knocks on her family’s doors to push them for clarity about their attitudes to her father’s crime that lasted so many years. A cinematographic journey challenging social norms and family perspectives in dealing with incest.

My Way (Written and directed by Thierry Teston and Liza Azuelos) NORTH AMERICAN PREMIERE. A compelling voyage to the heart of an iconic French-American song that explores the timeless classic's universal appeal and long-lasting legacy, from 1967 to the present, recounting, deconstructing, and paying homage to a tune that has been recorded 1,278 times by 714 artists in 163 languages, and is the number one most-requested song in karaoke bars worldwide.

Once Upon a Time Michel Legrand / Il Etait une fois Michel Legrand (Written and directed by David Herzog-Dessites) NORTH AMERICAN PREMIERE. The indomitable, ebullient presence of the great Michel Legrand fills every frame of this freewheeling portrait of the legendary 20th century musician and film composer. But it's the film's jazzy, effusive soundtrack that truly recounts the journey of a man who left an indelible mark on both music and world cinema.  Brimming with endless up-close-and-personal moments with the composer himself and interviews with countless collaborators, the film is an intimate portrait of a genuine maestro.

Tehachapi (Written and directed by JR) Once again, incisive visual artist JR captures the world around him and reflects it back to us in a way that transforms lives, mirrors the humanity within us, and literally changes the way we see the world. This time, his joint subject/canvas is the Tehachapi maximum security prison in Southern California. The idea was simply to photograph a group of inmates, create a monumental photo collage, and paste it on the ground of the prison courtyard, where it would remain for just a few days. Yet, in the process, so much more happened.

The Man with a Thousand Faces / L’Homme aux mille visages (Written and directed by Sonia Kronlund), NORTH AMERICAN PREMIERE.  His name is Alexandre, Ricardo, Daniel… He claims to be a surgeon, an engineer, from Argentina, from Brazil... And he lives with at least four different women simultaneously — women literally scattered across the planet. Filmmaker Sonia Kronlund constructs a veritable detective story, mischievously weaving together the astonishing, surprisingly funny tale of a modern-day Don Juan. Through the eyes of the victims, filmmaker Sonia Kronlund investigates to find out who is the man hiding himself behind so many identities.

The documentary program is presented in association with Le Bureau, Mediawan, MK2 Films, Pyramide International, AmaWaterways, and Titra FIlms.

The 11 TELEVISION SERIES in competition for both TAFFF Audience Award 2024 and the TAFFF Jury Award 2024 are:

A Dangerous Friendship / Une amitie dangereuse (HISTORICAL DRAMA. Written and Directed by Alain Tasma.) NORTH AMERICAN PREMIERE.  Adapted from the historical saga by Juliette Benzoni, Marie des intrigues et Marie des passions, © Plon 2013-2005, and starring a talented young cast, Alain Tasma’s historical series delves into the fierce bond that develops between two startlingly different, yet equally powerful, women in 17th century France — the free-spirited Marie de Rohan, Duchess of Chevreuse, and Anne of Austria, the straight-laced Queen of France now abandoned by her impotent monarch husband, Louis XIII. Marie sets out to bring the royal couple back together, bringing a lust for life and spontaneity into their staid household... as well as more than a few scandals.

Becoming Karl Lagerfeld (BIOPIC. Written by Isaure Pisani-Ferry, Dominique Baumard, Jennifer Have, and Nathalie Hertzberg. Directed by Audrey Estrougo and Jérôme Salle.)  Inspired by Le Monde investigative reporter Raphaëlle Bacqué’s biography, Kaiser Karl, the Disney+ Original series, produced by Gaumont, Becoming Karl Lagerfeld plunges us into the 1970s, a decade that was key to the legendary fashion designer's development, both artistically and personally, and long before he created the distinctive persona that became his trademark. 

Ca C’est Paris (COMEDY. Written by Marc Fitoussi, Edgard F. Grima, Jérôme Bruno, and Marina Defosse. Directed by Marc Fitoussi.) INTERNATIONAL PREMIERE Another behind-the-scenes showbiz romp from the creative team behind the beloved Emmy Award-winning comedy series Call My Agent!. Gaspard Berthille is manager of Le Tout-Paris, a time-honored Parisian cabaret that has, alas, seen better days. Unlike his late father, the night club's legendary impresario, Gaspard has failed miserably at perpetuating the cabaret's success. So he decides to sell the cherished family business to a big supermarket chain. Now he just has to break the news to his troupe.

Day One Escaping Ukraine / Sentinelles-Ukraine (WAR, DRAMA. Written by Frédéric Krivine, Thibault Valetoux. Directed by Jean-Philippe Amar) INTERNATIONAL PREMIERE  February 24, 2022. Lieutenant Anaïs Collet is on leave in a surrogacy clinic in Donbass, when Russia launches a military attack on Ukraine. She and her partner are suddenly trapped there, along with a group of other French couples. The Russian army is just a few kilometers away from the maternity hospital. They're torn — should they stay and wait for the birth of their child, or make haste and flee?

Extra. (COMEDY. Created, written and directed by Jonathan Hazan and Matthieu Bernard) NORTH AMERICAN PREMIERE. Catherine is a prim and proper wife, mother, and director of an inclusive choral group. Inadvertently walking in on one of her handicapped singers as she's having an orgasm unexpectedly awakens something in her. This fairly atypical family comedy, with its own brand of cheeky good humor, dares to challenge our notions of desire, intimacy and pleasure for people with disabilities.

In the Shadows / Dans l’ombre (POLITICAL THRILLER. Written and directed by Pierre Schoeller). NORTH AMERICAN PREMIERE. Devoted apparatchik and political advisor César Casalonga is 100% behind his boss of 20 years, underdog Paul Francœur, in his campaign to become the next President of France. Their long-held dream is suddenly in sight when Paul unexpectedly snatches the party’s nomination from front runner Marie-France Trémeau. But their triumph is quickly dampened by an anonymous phone call declaring that the primary was rigged. Based on the novel Dans l’Ombre, by former French Prime Minister Edouard Philippe and his own one-time advisor.

Samber / Sambre (CRIME DRAMA. Written by Alice Géraud, Marc Herpoux Academy Award winner Jean-Xavier de Lestrade. Directed by Jean-Xavier de Lestrade) US PREMIERE. In 1988, a woman regained consciousness after being brutally attacked on her way to work one morning. She files a complaint, but the bumbling, sexist cops don't take her seriously. Other crimes follow. Sixty-seven victims and 20 years later, in 2018, the most notorious serial rapist in France is finally arrested in this fictionalized series based on true events.

The Disappearance of Kimmy Diore / Les Enfants sont rois (DRAMA, THRILLER.  Written by Judith Havas, Victor Rodenbach, and Benjamin Adam. Artistic director, Sébastien Marnier) When six-year old social media celebrity Kimmy Diore is abducted in broad daylight, the police launch an intense investigation into the mysterious kidnapping. But given the child's manipulative, at times less-than-forthright, modern-day "stage mother," and her millions of rabid fans, potential suspects are plentiful.

The Confidante / Une amie dévouée (DRAMA. Created by Fanny Burdino, Samuel Doux, Alexandre Kauffmann, Jean-Baptiste Delafon. Directed by Just Philippot). After the terrorist attacks on Paris, a devastated Christelle joins a community of survivors… but her connection to the tragedy isn’t what it seems.

The Trigger / La Fievre (THRILLER. Written by Eric Benzekri, Laure Chichmanov, and Antony Gizel. Directed by Ziad Doueiri) NORTH AMERICAN PREMIERE.  The glitterati of French football attend an annual awards ceremony when scandal erupts. A Black football star headbutts his white coach and lets out a racist slur, triggering an enormous wave of media backlash, accusations of anti-white racism, and urgent demands for his expulsion from the team. A PR crisis management firm is immediately brought in to diffuse the situation and save the team's future, as a society torn apart by identity conflicts teeters on the brink of chaos and civil war.

Zorro (COMEDY/ADVENTURE. Written by Benjamin Charbit and Noé Debré. Directed by Jean-Baptiste Saurel and Émilie Noblet) NORTH AMERICAN PREMIERE. Academy Award Winner Jean Dujardin is Don Diego de la Vega, the elected mayor of Los Angeles. However, the city faces financial problems and his powers as mayor are not nearly enough to fight the rampant injustice. He hasn't pulled out his Zorro costume in 20 years, but this certainly seems like the moment. Yet Diego struggles to balance his dual identity, which is now straining his relationship with his wife Gabriella, who is not privy to his secret life. Can Diego salvage his marriage and his sanity amidst the chaos?

The Television Series Competition is presented in association with Disney+, Federation Studios, Les Films du Cygne, France TV Distribution, Max, Mediawan, Newen Connect, Paramount+ StudioCanal, Titra Films, and AmaWaterways. 

The documentary films and television series will compete for the 2024 TAFFF Awards, which will be awarded during a ceremony held in Paris on November 8. The full Festival line up, including all Feature films, will be announced on October 2.