France has selected Andrey Zvyagintsev’s “Minotaur” to represent the country in the international feature film race at the Oscars, despite the filmmaker and cast being Russian.
The selection was made today by France’s Oscar committee. “Minotaur” was one of five finalists, alongside Antonin Baudry’s “De Gaulle,” Arthur Harari’s “The Unknown,” Marine Atlan’s “La Gradiva” and Louis Clichy’s “Iron Boy,” but Zvyagintsev prevailed.
“Minotaur” was heavily financed by France, which made it eligible. This is the second straight year a non-French filmmaker has been selected. Last year, France submitted Iranian filmmaker Jafar Panahi’s “It Was Just an Accident,” which had won the Palme d’Or at Cannes. That choice sparked pushback in parts of the French industry over whether a country should be represented by a foreign filmmaker working largely in a language other than French.
Because of its production partnerships, “Minotaur” could technically have been submitted for the international Oscar by four different countries: Russia, Latvia, Germany or France. Russia, which has not submitted films since 2022, would never have put forward this scathing indictment of Putin. Germany selected Sandra Wollner’s “Everytime,” while Latvia, a minority co-producer, chose “Ulya.”
France, a country that delivers great films every year, has not won the international feature prize since Régis Wargnier’s “Indochine” in 1993, despite frequent nominations over the past 33 years.
The 2027 race is also the first under new Academy rules allowing non-English-language films that win the top prize at one of six designated international festivals (Berlin, Busan, Cannes, Sundance, Toronto and Venice) to enter the international feature race without being their country’s official submission.
So what are the main contenders for a nomination in the international feature category? “Minotaur,” a great film, is certainly up there, as are “La Bola Negra” (Spain), “Fjord” (Norway), “All of a Sudden” (Japan), “Possible Love” (South Korea), “Rose” (Germany), “Coward” (Belgium), “Everytime” (Austria) and “Fatherland” (Poland).
The Academy will announce the 15-film international feature shortlist on December 15, with nominations following on January 21, 2027.
