It’s up for eleven French César awards.

And now Cork audiences will have a chance to catch The Innocent (L’Innocent) by Louis Garrel when it premieres at the opening of the Cork French Film Festival at The Gate Cinema on March 9th.

The most nominated French film this year, Garrel directs and co-stars as a man who tries to derail his mother’s relationship with a recently released convict, in a campaign that will find him flirting with the wrong side of the law.

Based on Garrel’s life story, the film has been described as a romantic dark comedy that is both hilarious and inventive.

You can catch the trailer here:

Rise (En Corps) will close off what promises to be a hugely impressive festival on March 12th. The life-affirming Cédric Klapisch film about a ballet prima donna of the Paris Opera is also César nominated in nine categories.

This year’s theme is travel; exploring how cinema is both a means to travel virtually and a medium that sparks a desire for adventure.

The festival will also screen five other premieres this year: Xalé by Moussa Sène Absa (Senegal), Lie With Me (Arrête avec tes Mensonges) by Olivier Peyron (France), Viking by Stéphane Lafleur (Canada), Two Tickets to Greece (Les Cyclades) by Marc Fitoussi (France), and the major biopic Eiffel by Martin Bourboulon (France), which receives its first Irish cinema screening at the festival.

Also on the bill this year is the fabulous audience-pleasing Driving Madeleine (Une Belle Course), the story of the bonding of a disillusioned taxi driver and an elderly passenger and the Belgian Oscar-nominated film Close by Lukas Dhont.

“Our festival is a fantastic way to further strengthen Ireland’s links with France, as we celebrate the 225th anniversary of ‘The Year of the French,’ which celebrates France’s attempt to assist the Society of United Irishmen against British rule by sending several frigates to Ireland in 1798,” said Cork French Film Festival Co-Director and French Honorary Consul in Cork Josselin Le Gall.

“The links between France and Cork, in particular, are very important as Cork is home to the second largest French community in Ireland and has been twinned for over 40 years with Rennes in Brittany.”

Tickets for the opening film are now available at The Gate Cinema and online at gatecinemas.com.