The FACF Announces The 2025 American French Film Festival Award Winners

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Category: Entertainment News

Published on Thursday, 06 November 2025 06:33

Written by A&E Contributing Editor

"Love Me Tender," directed by Anna Cazenave Combet, won the Critics Award for best film.  The documentary film award goes to "Drugged and Abused: No More Shame," and "The Girl in the Snow," won the First Feature award.

After a sold out Closing Night featuring the exclusive screening of GURU (Gourou), the new film by director/writer Yann Gozlan and starring Pierre Niney, THE AMERICAN FRENCH FILM FESTIVAL (TAFFF) wrapped up its most-successful week-long festival to date. More than 14,000 people attended the week-long event taking place at the DGA Theater Complex October 28 to November 3.

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Members of the Franco-American Cultural Fund (FACF) and TAFFF's Program Committee announced the winners of THE AMERICAN FRENCH FILM FESTIVAL AWARDS. Of the 70 films and series showcased during the festival, 69 were in consideration for the Awards. The nine awards include those for Cinema, TV Movie, First Film by a director, TV Series, Documentary, and Short Film.  The awards were voted on by the attending audience of TAFFF, members of the Los Angeles Film Critics Association, a jury of entertainment professionals, and students who participated in the TAFFF High School Screenings Program.

Taking the top honor for the Audience Award for best film is COLORS OF TIME (La Venue de l'avenir), directed by Cédric Klapisch and written by Cédric Klapisch and Santiago Amigorena.  International sales: StudioCanal.

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LOVE ME TENDER, directed and written by Anna Cazenave Combet, won the Critics Award for best film.  International sales: Be For Films.

THE GIRL IN THE SNOW (L'Engloutie), directed by Louise Hémon and written by Louise Hémon and Anaïs Tellenne, won the First Feature Award. International sales: Kinology.

The Documentary Film Award goes to DRUGGED AND ABUSED: NO MORE SHAME (Soumission chimique: Pour que la honte change de camp), directed by Linda Bendali and written by Linda Bendali and Andrea Rawlins-Gaston. International sales: Studio TF1 and France Télévisions.

The American Students Award goes to NOUVELLE VAGUE, directed by Richard Linklater and written by Vince Palmo, Holly Gent Palmo, Michèle Halberstadt, and Laetitia Masson.  US Distributor: Netflix

In the Television category, BLESSED BE SIXTINE (Bénie soit Sixtine), directed by Sophie Reine and written by Dominique Garnier, Zoé Galeron, and Maylis Adnémar, won the TV Movie Award.  International sales: Mediawan Rights

The TV series winning the Audience Series Award is THE DEAL, directed by Jean-Stépane Bron. The series was created and written by Alice Wincour and Jean-Stéphane Bron, with writers Eugène Riousse, Julien Lacombe, Stéphane Mitchell, and Valentine Monteil. International sales: Gaumont / Arte

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THE SENTINELS (Les Sentinelles), directed by Thierry Poiraud and Edouard Salier, and created by Guillaume Lemans and Xabi Molia, won the Jury Series Award.  International Sales: StudioCanal / Canal+. 

The Short Film Award goes to THE LIFELINE (La ligne de vie), written and directed by Hugo Becker.  International sales: Nouvelle Donne Productions.

A special awards ceremony and celebration for all the winners will be held in Paris at the SACEM headquarters on November 12.

Additional awards presented during the Festival included the Lifetime Award presented to Jodie Foster and the Franco American Cultural Fund Award presented to Richard Linklater.  The CNC (French Film Board) also presented the Chevalier des Arts et des Lettres to Linklater during the Festival.

THE AMERICAN FRENCH FILM FESTIVAL, which celebrated its 29th year this year had one of its biggest years yet, with over 14,000 attending and sold out theaters for many of the screenings, including Opening, Centerpiece, and Closing Nights. 

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The American French Film Festival 

The American French Film Festival was created and is produced by the Franco-American Cultural Fund (FACF), a unique collaboration between the Directors Guild of America (DGA), the Motion Picture Association (MPA), France's Society of Authors, Composers and Publishers of Music (SACEM) and the Writers Guild of America West (WGAW). It is organized in partnership with the CNC/Film France, Unifrance, the Consulate General of France in Los Angeles, and Villa Albertine, with the support of Air Tahiti Nui, Champagne Lous Roederer, ELMA, TV5 Monde, and Variety.  The TAFFF educational program is carried out in association with ELMA.