Tomboy

France, 2011, 84 min
Genre/Subjects: Drama, Lesbian, Transgender, Youth
Language: in French with Russian and English subtitles

DIRECTOR: Céline Sciamma
Cast: Zoé Heran, Malonn Lévana, Jeanne Disson

There is definitely something boyish about ten-year-old Laure. She has recently moved to a new area with her parents and her little sister, Jeanne. It’s summertime and all the other neighborhood children are playing outside. Only Laure is alone, because she doesn’t know anyone her own age.

One day, she meets Lisa, who is ten also. Laure allows her new acquaintance to believe that she is a boy. Laure becomes Mikaël. As soon as she has transformed herself, she begins playing with all the other neighborhood children. As time passes, Laure’s relationship to Lisa becomes increasingly close, making the ambiguity of her situation ever more complicated.

Director Céline Sciamma is part of a new generation of filmmakers in France. In an interview with “Cineuropa” in August 2007, she comments, “I became a cinephile as a result of young French cinema of the 90s: Desplechin, Lvovsky, Rochant. But I like Gus Van Sant and Larry Clark a lot, too, for their work on adolescence, not to forget David Lynch.”

After making her debut in 2007 with Naissance des pieuvres (Waterlilies) Tomboy is Céline Sciamma’s second full length feature film. This year she received the France Culture Cinéma prize as new talent of the year. The presentation of the award took place during the Cannes festival, signaling once again the great recognition and support that she has obtained as a director.

 

 

 

AWARDS:
2011 Golden Duke statuette for Grand Prix, Odessa International Film Festival
2011The FICC Jury Special Prize and The Milo%u0161 Macourek Award - Special Recognition for a Feature Film for Youth, 51st Zlin Film Festival (Czech Republic)
2011 Jury Award and Audience Award, Torino GLBT film Festival
2011 Special Jury Award, Teddy Award, Berlin International Film Festival

 





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