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| Roman Polanski when he was directing The Ghost Writer for which he won a César Photo: UniFrance |
Director Roman Polanski has decided to decline the invitation to preside over this year’s César awards, France’s equivalent of the Oscars, after protests by the feminist group Osez le Feminisme.
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| Roman Polanski: “saddened” by feminist protests Photo: UniFrance |
Polanski, who lives in France and is currently at work on Based On A True Story, co-written by Olivier Assayas and starring Eva Green, his wife Emmanuelle Seigner and Vincent Perez, said through his lawyer that he was “deeply saddened” that he had been forced into this position by the group’s planned protest.
He has been wanted by the US authorities since 1978 when he was convicted of a child rape after pleading guilty and then fleeing the country before sentence. He cannot be extradited from France as the country has no extradition treaty with the States. The feminist group described themselves as “nauseated” at the choice of Polanski and urged a red carpet protest at the ceremony on 24 February. They added: “The quality of his filmography has little to do with the crime he committed, his flight, and his refusal to assume his responsibilities.”
Laurence Rossignol, France’s Minister for Women’s Rights, expressed her disappointment in the Academy for their invitation to Polanski, calling the decision “surprising and shocking,” although Culture Minister Audrey Azoulay took a more conciliatory approaching, pointing out that the case is 40 years old.
Polanski has been honoured in the past with a César for Tess as best director in 1980, and also the same award for The Pianist (2002), The Ghost (2010) and Venus in Fur (2014).
The César awards ceremony takes place on 24 February in the Salle Pleyel, a concert hall and arts centre in the Rue du Faubourg Saint-Honoré.
