Entering his third decade of filmmaking with this decade seeing three Venice Film Festival preemed films in 2020’s New Order, 2021’s Sundown, 2023’s Memory with last year’s Dreams going the Berlinale route, Michel Franco moves far off his normal Mexico/United States backdrop for his tenth feature film. Violence, detachment, isolation and disconnection are touchstone themes in his work, and here Franco crawls back into Israel’s history and the story of Meir Har Zion. Here is everything we know so far … for Michel Franco’s Circles.
Shot at the very start of January last year, as with all his work we’re kept in the dark and often only find out abiout projects a bit after the fact. This becomes his second black&white feature here shot in format 1,66:1.
Written by Franco alongside Tom Shoval, the Hebrew language portrait set in the early 1950s, during the formative years of the State of Israel. It tells the story of siblings Meir and Shoshana Har Zion, and their deep connection amid the cycle of violence between Arabs and Jews. Meir Har Zion would go on to become a legendary and controversial figure. In the eyes of many, the greatest IDF fighter; to others, a man whose problematic moral outlook raised troubling questions.
Itamar Tenenbaum, Maya Pinchasi and Kais Nashif best known for Paradise Now and more recently Tel Aviv on Fire.
Teaming with cinematographer Yves Cape for a seventh consecutive feature, Franco produced the project with Eyal Shiray and Alexander Rodnyansky.
Set to be released this year, Franco has not been to Cannes since 2017’s April’s Daughter. A hot topic issue film, could this be featured in competition for the Palme d’Or or the more risk friendly Directors’ Fortnight who programmed Franco’s feature debut Daniel & Ana in 2009?
