David Fincher is set to receive the Honorary Cesar Award, France's highest film prize, during a ceremony which will take place Feb. 24 in Paris. "Fincher is one of these rare filmmakers whose entire filmography has become cult over the years," said the Cesar Academie in a release. The French organization described Fincher as being a "visionary," and said his movies were "hypnotic, intellectual and a source of inspiration for so many artists." "He shocked us with 'Seven,' kept us...
Académie des César
Véronique
Cayla
President
Cayla was a victim of France’s overhaul of its Oscar selection committee, which eliminated the slot that would have been reserved for her as head of the Cesar Academy, allowing her to observe meetings going forward but not participate. It was a minor problem compared with what she faced when she was tapped to run Cesar Academy alongside Éric Toledano (co-director of “The Intouchables”) in 2020 with the mandate to reform the organization. It had been criticized as a secretive elite boys’ club and threatened with a boycott after it bestowed multiple Cesar Award nominations on controversial director Roman Polanski’s “An Officer and a Spy.” The 2022 edition of the Cesar Awards was held without incident in February, with Xavier Giannoli’s romantic drama “Lost Illusions,” starring Benjamin Voisin, emerging as the top winner, with seven trophies.