Jacques Audiard’s “Emilia Pérez” swept France’s 30th Lumiere Awards, the local equivalent to the Golden Globes, at a ceremony held on Monday in Paris at the Forum des Images auditorium.
“Emilia Pérez” dominated the show, winning a whopping five awards: best film, director, script, actress for Karla Sofía Gascón, and music for Camille and Clement Ducol. The awards were voted on by France-based journalists from 38 countries.
The Spanish-language, Mexico-set crime musical stars Gascón as notorious cartel leader Manitas del Monte, who fakes her own death to live authentically as a trans woman. The supporting cast includes Selena Gomez, who plays Manitas’ tormented wife Jessi, and Zoe Saldaña, who portrays Rita, a talented but overworked lawyer recruited by Emilia to help her start a new life. Since winning Cannes’ jury prize and an award for its female ensemble, “Emilia Pérez” has received a flood of international laurels and is now leading the U.S. awards race. At the Golden Globes, where it was named best musical or comedy, “Emilia Pérez” led all films with four wins. Audiard has this year broken a record in the history of the Lumiere Awards. This edition marks his third time winning best film, after “The Beat That My Heart Skipped” in 2006 and “The Sisters Brother” in 2019; and his fourth time winning best director, after “A Prophet” in 2010, “Rust and Bone” in 2013 and “The Sisters Brother” in 2019.
Another key Lumiere Award went to “Souleymane’s Story,” directed by Boris Lojkine, which won best actor for Abou Sangare. He stars in the film as a Guinean immigrant navigating the streets of Paris where he works as a bike courier ahead of his asylum interview. The film world premiered in Un Certain Regard at Cannes and also won best actor for Sangare.
Louise Courvoisier’s “Holy Cow,” a contemporary western, won two awards, best feature debut and male newcomer for Clement Faveau, who stars as Totone, an 18-year-old man who lives with his father and little sister on the family farm in the Jura region. After the abrupt death of his father, Totone sees his life turned upside down and he suddenly has to take care of his sister and the farm on his own.
Julien Colonna’s “The Kingdom,” a family crime drama set in Corsica in 1995, won best female newcomer for Ghjuvanna Benedetti, who stars in the film as Lesia, the 15-year-old daughter of a mafia boss on the run.
The best documentary award went to “Dahomey,” a dreamlike and discursive film directed by Mati Diop exploring issues surrounding the restitution of treasures stolen by colonial powers. Best animated feature went to “Flow,” a Latvian indie movie directed by Gints Zilbalodis, which also won a prize at the Golden Globes where it beat U.S. blockbusters such as “Inside Out 2” and “Moana.”
Best international co-production was won by Mohammad Rasoulof’s Iranian political drama “The Seed of the Sacred Fig.”
Best cinematography was awarded to “The Count of Monte Cristo,” an epic adventure film based on Alexandre Dumas’ literary masterpiece, for Nicolas Bolduc. The 30th ceremony of the Lumiere Awards was held on the closing night of the Rendez-Vous With French Cinema, a showcase of Gallic movies hosted by the promotion org Unifrance.
The Lumiere Awards kicks off France’s awards season every year. The Cesar Awards, which is the local equivalent to the Oscars, will take place on Feb. 28.
