PARIS — “Mamma Mia!” will kick off the 34th annual Deauville Festival of American Cinema on Sept. 5, organizers said Monday.
Distributor Universal will showcase its new Paris-based French wing with a strong presence at the fest including Clint Eastwood’s “Changeling” and Guillermo del Toro’s “Hellboy II: The Golden Army.”
Other U.S. majors will be keeping a low profile with just a few titles in the official selection, including Warner Bros.’ “Get Smart” and Sony’s “Lakeview Terrace” and “Married Life.”
An American Nights sidebar will feature classic U.S. titles totaling 187 hours of round-the-clock screenings.
French actress Carole Bouquet will top an eight-strong jury including French actor Edouard Baer, Israeli actress-director Ronit Elkabetz and Palme d’Or-winning Romanian director Cristian Mungiu.
The festival’s Uncle Sam’s Docs sidebar will see nine documentaries compete for Gallic pay TV network Canal Plus’ Favorite Doc prize.
Deauville will pay homage to Spike Lee, who will be in town to present the French premiere of “Miracle at St. Anna.” Parker Posey, Ed Harris and director Mitchell Leisen also will be honored.
This year’s Michel d’Ornano prize for best French first film will be awarded to Jean-Stephane Sauvaire for his harrowing portrait of child soldiers in Africa, “Johnny Mad Dog.”
A lineup for the Deauville fest follows:
Competition
“Afterschool,” Antonio Campos
“All G-d’s Children Can Dance,” Robert Logevall
“American Son,” Neil Abramson
“Ballast,” Lance Hammer
“Gardens of the Night,” Damian Harris
“Towelhead,” Alan Ball
“The Visitor,” Tom McCarthy
“Smart People,” Noam Murro
“Snow Angels,” David Gordon Green
“Sunshine Cleaning,” Christine Jeffs
Official selection
“Mamma Mia!” Phyllida Lloyd
“Appaloosa,” Ed Harris
“Changeling,” Clint Eastwood
“Dan in Real Life,” Peter Hedges
“Get Smart,” Peter Segal
“Hellboy II: The Golden Army,” Guillermo del Toro
“Idiots & Angels,” Bill Plympton
“Lakeview Terrace,” Neil LaBute
“Lars and the Real Girl,” Craig Gillespie
“Married Life,” Ira Sachs
“Miracle at St. Anna,” Spike Lee
“Recount,” Jay Roach
“The Wackness,” Jonathan Levine
“The Life Before her Eyes,” Vadim Perelman
“The Girl Next Door,” Gregory Wilson
“Then She Found Me,” Helen Hunt
Jury
French actress Carole Bouquet
French actor Edouard Baer
Israeli actress-director Ronit Elkabetz
French director Pierre Jolivet
French director Cedric Kahn
Belgian director Bouli Lanners
Romanian director Cristian Mungiu
Portuguese actress Leonor Silvera
American artistic director Dean Tavoularis
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