France selects Andrey Zvyagintsev’s “Minotaur,” a political thriller that won the Grand Prize at Cannes, as its entry for the Academy Awards’ Best International Feature Film category. The decision is made by France’s Oscar committee on Wednesday after auditions involving the film’s producers, international sales agents, and U.S. distributors.
The committee chooses “Minotaur” from a shortlist that also includes “De Gaulle: Tilting Iron,” “Iron Boy,” and “La Gradiva,” among other contenders mentioned in the reporting. Both outlets describe the film as French-produced and cite its Cannes success as part of the basis for the selection, while also noting the participation of U.S. distribution and sales stakeholders in the process. Deadline additionally emphasizes Zvyagintsev’s status as an exiled Russian director.
Overall, the coverage aligns on the outcome—France’s official submission for the 99th Academy Awards—while differing mainly in which contextual details they foreground, such as the director’s background and the specific framing of the Cannes achievement.
