France’s Césars banned anyone charged or convicted of a sex crime from attending this year’s ceremony. Actors, directors, producers or other artists accused or convicted of sex crimes can still be nominated for a Cesar Award and still win. But they won’t be allowed to attend awards shows, and if they win, “no one will be allowed to speak for them.”
Laissez-faire approach to members accused of sex crimes. Things came to a head recently when actress Sofiane Bennacer, who appeared in Valeria Bruni Tedeschi’s Cannes title Forever Young, was shortlisted in the César Best Newcomer category. Kaiser ultimately removed him from the list after discovering he had been indicted on multiple rape and violence charges.
The French film industry has been notoriously slow to respond to the #MeToo movement’s demands to punish accusers of sexual violence and introduce structural reforms to protect victims. Gerard Depardieu’s rape prosecution hasn’t stopped the French star from finding work. Despite facing trial on sexual assault charges, National Film Council (CNC) President Dominique Boutonnat was re-elected for a second term in the powerful industry body last year.
When Roman Polanski With Officer and Spy at 2020 Césars it triggered multiple strikes and triggered Strong opposition to the academy. Polanski did not attend the ceremony, saying he wanted to avoid a “public lynching”.
On Monday, Julius Caesar issued a statement saying the alleged and convicted perpetrators would be excluded from the upcoming event “out of respect for victims, even alleged victims.” outside of the awards ceremony.
The move is the first step in a wider reshuffle at Césars. The academy is discussing long-term changes to eligibility rules, which will be submitted for a membership vote in the first half of this year.
The 2020 Césars will be held in February .
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