Florence Pugh, Francois Civil Honored With Chopard Award for Rising Talent
By Elsa Keslassy
LOS ANGELES (Variety.com) – Rising British actress Florence Pugh (“Lady Macbeth”) and French actor Francois Civil (“Wolf’s Call”) received the Chopard Trophy Award at a star-studded ceremony hosted by on Monday during the Cannes Film Festival.
Pugh and Civil were chosen among many actors by a jury consisting of former Chopard Trophy recipients such as Marion Cotillard, Gael García Bernal and Lea Seydoux, Cannes’s director Thierry Fremaux, Variety’s Steven Gaydos, and Chopard’s Caroline Scheufele.
Both actors are at a turning point in their careers. Pugh will soon be seen in two highly anticipated films, Ari Aster’s “Midsommar” and Greta Gerwig’s “Little Women” remake, in which she’s star opposite Saoirse Ronan, Emma Watson, and Timothée Chalamet. She’s also just joined Scarlett Johansson in the cast of the Marvel Studios’ movie “Black Widow,” which will be directed by Australian filmmaker Cate Shortland.
Civil already had three films in theaters this year — the ambitious submarine thriller “Wolf’s Call,” the romantic comedy “Mon inconnue” and the Berlin-premiering film “Who You Think I Am” with Juliette Binoche. Up next, Civil will star Cédric Klapisch’s romantic movie “Deux moi” and Cedric Jimenez’s (“La French”) next project.
Ahead of the awards ceremony on Monday, Pugh told Variety about her experience working with female-led projects like Gerwig’s “Little Women.”
Pugh said one of the first films she starred in was ‘The Falling,’ written and directed by Carol Morley. “At the time when we were filming I didn’t realize it was unheard of to have the majority of your crew all female,” said Pugh. “And then I did my second film and realized there were virtually no women on set.”
The actress said being back to working with a female director and predominantly female set on “Little Women” was really wonderful.
“Greta’s way of working is totally different… She’s an incredible screenwriter. She is very lyrical in the way she likes the lines to being said,” said Pugh. “It was a very musical experience. It was almost like… she was conducting an orchestra,” she added.
Pugh also spoke about another female-powered project she’s boarded, “Black Widow,” and said she’s already started prepping for the role and will be meeting Johansson for the first time next week. The actress said she was a “massive fan” of Kate Shortland.
Civil, meanwhile, said receiving the Chopard Trophy for an international jury was a feast in itself. Considered as a French heartthrob, the 30 year-old started acting at a young age and only recently began getting leading roles. He earned critical praise for his performances in “Wolf’s Call,” “Who You Think I Am,” and “Mon inconnue.”
Civil, who is fluent in English, said he was looking forward to working on more international projects. Upon accepting his award from the hands of Zhang Ziyi, the Chopard Trophy’s godmother, Civil paid tribute to the Chinese actress whom she said inspired him to become an actor after watching her performance in “Crouching Tiger, Hidden Dragon.”
