Francois Ozon, whose latest film, “Peter von Kant,” opened the Berlinale, is already shooting his next movie, “Madeleine,” with a flurry of stars including Isabelle Huppert, Dany Boon and Fabrice Luchini.
The project, which is believed to be his most ambitious since “8 Women,” is being introduced to buyers at Cannes by Playtime and has already sparked strong interest. The plot is being kept under wraps, but Playtime is presenting the script to select buyers.
Ozon is one of the few bankable European directors whose films have opened at major festivals and traditionally sell around the world, including in the U.S.
“Madeleine” reteams Ozon with his regular producers, Eric and Nicolas Altmayer at Mandarin Cinema. Gaumont will be distributing the film in France.
The cast also includes Rebecca Marder, the rising French star of Arnaud Desplechin’s “Tromperie” and Sandrine Kiberlain’s “Une jeune fille qui va bien.”
“Madeleine” also reunites Ozon with Huppert 20 years after “8 Women,” the mystery musical romance that is one of Ozon’s most iconic films, along with “Swimming Pool.” It’s the first time, however, that Ozon will work with Boon, a French comedy fixture who usually stars in mainstream movies rather than auteur fare. Boon recently completed the shoot of Netflix’s “Murder Mystery 2” with Jennifer Aniston and Adam Sandler.
Ozon was in competition at last year’s Cannes with “Everything Went Fine,” starring Sophie Marceau. Some of his notable recent credits include “By the Grace of God,” a searing psychological drama based on a real-life French priest abuse scandal.