Euzhan Palcy (; born 13 January 1958) is a French film director, screenwriter, and producer. Her films are known to explore themes of race, gender, and politics, with an emphasis on the perpetuated effects of colonialism. Palcy's first feature film ''
Sugar Cane Alley'' (1983) received numerous awards including the
César Award for Best First Feature Film. For directing ''
A Dry White Season
''A Dry White Season'' is a 1989 American drama film directed by Euzhan Palcy and starring Donald Sutherland, Jürgen Prochnow, Marlon Brando, Janet Suzman, Zakes Mokae and Susan Sarandon. It was written by Colin Welland and Palcy, based upon ...
'' (1989), she became the first black female director to have a film produced by a major Hollywood studio, that being by
MGM
Metro-Goldwyn-Mayer Studios Inc., also known as Metro-Goldwyn-Mayer Pictures and abbreviated as MGM, is an American film, television production, distribution and media company owned by Amazon through MGM Holdings, founded on April 17, 1924 a ...
.
Palcy also directed the independent film ''
Siméon'' (1992). She has since moved towards directing documentaries and television projects such as ''Aimé Césaire: A Voice for History'' (1994). She then directed the television films ''
Ruby Bridges
Ruby Nell Bridges Hall (born September 8, 1954) is an American civil rights activist. She was the first African-American child to desegregate the all-white William Frantz Elementary School in Louisiana during the New Orleans school desegreg ...
'' (1998) and ''The Killing Yard'' (2001), as well as the documentary ''The Journey of the Dissidents'' (2005) and the miniseries ''The Brides of Bourbon Island'' (2007).
Throughout her career, Palcy has explored various genres, often breaking ground being the first female black director to do so. She is the first black director to win a
César Award and the
Venice Film Festival
The Venice Film Festival or Venice International Film Festival ( it, Mostra Internazionale d'Arte Cinematografica della Biennale di Venezia, "International Exhibition of Cinematographic Art of the Venice Biennale") is an annual film festival h ...
's
Silver Lion
The Silver Lion ( it, Leone d'argento, also known as Silver Lion for Best Direction) is an annual award presented for best directing achievements in a feature film at official competition section of the Venice Film Festival since 1998.
The pri ...
, both for ''Sugar Cane Alley'' (1983).
In 2022, she was given the
Academy Honorary Award for her contributions to cinema.
Early life and education
Euzhan Palcy was born in
Martinique
Martinique ( , ; gcf, label=Martinican Creole, Matinik or ; Kalinago: or ) is an island and an overseas department/region and single territorial collectivity of France. An integral part of the French Republic, Martinique is located in ...
, an
overseas department and region of France
The overseas departments and regions of France (french: départements et régions d'outre-mer, ; ''DROM'') are departments of France that are outside metropolitan France, the European part of France. They have exactly the same status as mainlan ...
. Palcy grew up studying the films of
Fritz Lang
Friedrich Christian Anton Lang (; December 5, 1890 – August 2, 1976), known as Fritz Lang, was an Austrian film director, screenwriter, and producer who worked in Germany and later the United States.Obituary ''Variety'', August 4, 1976, p. 6 ...
,
Alfred Hitchcock,
Billy Wilder
Billy Wilder (; ; born Samuel Wilder; June 22, 1906 – March 27, 2002) was an Austrian-American filmmaker. His career in Hollywood spanned five decades, and he is regarded as one of the most brilliant and versatile filmmakers of Classic Hol ...
and
Orson Welles
George Orson Welles (May 6, 1915 – October 10, 1985) was an American actor, director, producer, and screenwriter, known for his innovative work in film, radio and theatre. He is considered to be among the greatest and most influential f ...
. She decided at the young age of ten to become a filmmaker, largely due to the imprecise depictions of black people in film and television, and her desire for a more accurate portrayal. Euzhan went to college at home in Martinique, and eventually found work at a local TV network. When she was a teenager, her success as a poet and songwriter led to her being asked to do a weekly poetry program on local television. It was there she wrote and directed the short film La Messagère, and began her filmmaking career. The drama, which centers on the relationship between a girl and her grandmother, and which explores the lives of workers on a banana plantation, was the first
West Indian
A West Indian is a native or inhabitant of the West Indies (the Antilles and the Lucayan Archipelago). For more than 100 years the words ''West Indian'' specifically described natives of the West Indies, but by 1661 Europeans had begun to use it ...
production mounted in Martinique.
She left for Paris in 1975 to earn a master's degree in
French literature
French literature () generally speaking, is literature written in the French language, particularly by citizens of France; it may also refer to literature written by people living in France who speak traditional languages of France other than F ...
, in theater, at the
Sorbonne
Sorbonne may refer to:
* Sorbonne (building), historic building in Paris, which housed the University of Paris and is now shared among multiple universities.
*the University of Paris (c. 1150 – 1970)
*one of its components or linked institution, ...
, a D.E.A. in Art and Archeology and a film degree (specializing in cinematography) from renowned
Louis Lumière College Louis may refer to:
* Louis (coin)
* Louis (given name), origin and several individuals with this name
* Louis (surname)
* Louis (singer), Serbian singer
* HMS ''Louis'', two ships of the Royal Navy
See also
Derived or associated terms
* Lewis ...
. Palcy soon began a film adaptation of
Joseph Zobel’s novel Black Shack Alley, a semi-autobiographical novel that explores the struggle for change with shifting race relations. Palcy states, “I discovered the novel when I was fourteen. It was the first time I read a novel by a black man, a black of my country, a black who was speaking about poor people.” As she became acquainted with members of the French film community, Palcy received encouragement from New Wave filmmaker
François Truffaut and his collaborator
Suzanne Shiffman. In 1982 the French government provided partial funding for the film.
Career
Early work
It was in Paris, with the encouragement of her "French Godfather",
François Truffaut that she was able to put together her first feature, ''
Sugar Cane Alley'' (1983). Shot for less than $1,000,000, it documents life on a Martinique sugar cane plantation in the 1930s through the eyes of a young boy. ''Sugar Cane Alley'' won more than 17 international awards, including the
Venice Film Festival
The Venice Film Festival or Venice International Film Festival ( it, Mostra Internazionale d'Arte Cinematografica della Biennale di Venezia, "International Exhibition of Cinematographic Art of the Venice Biennale") is an annual film festival h ...
Silver Lion
The Silver Lion ( it, Leone d'argento, also known as Silver Lion for Best Direction) is an annual award presented for best directing achievements in a feature film at official competition section of the Venice Film Festival since 1998.
The pri ...
, as well as the Coppa Volpi (
Volpi Cup
The Venice Film Festival or Venice International Film Festival ( it, Mostra Internazionale d'Arte Cinematografica della Biennale di Venezia, "International Exhibition of Cinematographic Art of the Venice Biennale") is an annual film festival he ...
) for Best Lead Actress Award (
Darling Legitimus
Darling is a term of endearment of Old English origin.
Darling or Darlin' or Darlings may also refer to:
People
* Darling (surname)
* Darling Jimenez (born 1980), American boxer
* Darling Légitimus (1907–1999), French actress
Places Austral ...
). It also won the prestigious
César Award (the French equivalent to an Academy Award) for best first feature film. Among the firsts, it won the Special Jury Award at the
Worldfest-Houston International Film Festival
The WorldFest-Houston International Film Festival, founded in 1968, is an annual film festival held annually in April in Houston, Texas. Notable festival alumni include John Lee Hancock, who wrote and directed the Oscar-winning film '' The Blind ...
and the first Public Award at the
Fespaco
The Panafrican Film and Television Festival of Ouagadougou (Festival panafricain du cinéma et de la télévision de Ouagadougou or FESPACO) is a film festival in Burkina Faso, held biennially in Ouagadougou, where the organization is based. It ...
: Africa's biggest film festival. After seeing Palcy's work,
Robert Redford handpicked her to attend the 1984 Sundance Director's Lab (
Sundance Institute
Sundance Institute is a non-profit organization founded by Robert Redford committed to the growth of independent artists. The institute is driven by its programs that discover and support independent filmmakers, theatre artists and composers fr ...
), becoming her "American Godfather".
''A Dry White Season''
In 1989, Euzhan Palcy wrote and directed ''
A Dry White Season
''A Dry White Season'' is a 1989 American drama film directed by Euzhan Palcy and starring Donald Sutherland, Jürgen Prochnow, Marlon Brando, Janet Suzman, Zakes Mokae and Susan Sarandon. It was written by Colin Welland and Palcy, based upon ...
,'' an American
drama film
In film and television, drama is a category or genre of narrative fiction (or semi-fiction) intended to be more serious than humorous in tone. Drama of this kind is usually qualified with additional terms that specify its particular super ...
directed by Euzhan Palcy and starring
Donald Sutherland
Donald McNichol Sutherland (born 17 July 1935) is a Canadian actor whose film career spans over six decades. He has been nominated for nine Golden Globe Awards, winning two for his performances in the television films '' Citizen X'' (1995) a ...
,
Jürgen Prochnow
Jürgen Prochnow ( ; born 10 June 1941) is a German-American actor. His international breakthrough was his portrayal of the good-hearted and sympathetic U-boat Captain "Der Alte" ("Old Man") in the 1981 war film ''Das Boot''.
He is also known f ...
,
Marlon Brando,
Janet Suzman
Dame Janet Suzman, (born 9 February 1939) is a South African-born British actress who enjoyed a successful early career in the Royal Shakespeare Company, later replaying many Shakespearean roles, among others, on TV. In her first film, ''Nichol ...
,
Zakes Mokae
Zakes Makgona Mokae (5 August 1934 – 11 September 2009) was a South African-American actor of theatre and film.
Life and career
Mokae was born in Johannesburg, South Africa, moved to the United Kingdom in 1961, and to the United States ...
and
Susan Sarandon
Susan Abigail Sarandon (; née Tomalin; born October 4, 1946) is an American actorMcCabe, Bruce"Susan Sarandon, the 'actor'" ''Boston Globe''. April 17, 1981. Retrieved January 21, 2021. and activist. She is the recipient of various accolades, ...
. It was written by
Colin Welland
Colin Welland (born Colin Edward Williams; 4 July 1934 – 2 November 2015) was an English actor and screenwriter. He won the BAFTA Award for Best Actor in a Supporting Role for his performance as Mr Farthing in '' Kes'' (1969) and the Academy Aw ...
and Palcy, based upon
André Brink's novel
A Dry White Season
''A Dry White Season'' is a 1989 American drama film directed by Euzhan Palcy and starring Donald Sutherland, Jürgen Prochnow, Marlon Brando, Janet Suzman, Zakes Mokae and Susan Sarandon. It was written by Colin Welland and Palcy, based upon ...
. It is set in
South Africa
South Africa, officially the Republic of South Africa (RSA), is the Southern Africa, southernmost country in Africa. It is bounded to the south by of coastline that stretch along the Atlantic Ocean, South Atlantic and Indian Oceans; to the ...
in 1976 and deals with the subject of
apartheid
Apartheid (, especially South African English: , ; , "aparthood") was a system of institutionalised racial segregation that existed in South Africa and South West Africa (now Namibia) from 1948 to the early 1990s. Apartheid was ...
. She is also the only woman filmmaker to have directed
Marlon Brando, whom she brought back to the screen after a gap of nine years.
Impressed by Palcy's commitment to social change,
Marlon Brando came out of retirement, agreeing to act in ''
A Dry White Season
''A Dry White Season'' is a 1989 American drama film directed by Euzhan Palcy and starring Donald Sutherland, Jürgen Prochnow, Marlon Brando, Janet Suzman, Zakes Mokae and Susan Sarandon. It was written by Colin Welland and Palcy, based upon ...
'' (1989) for free. Palcy was also the first black director to direct an actor to an Oscar nomination
Also starring in the film were actors
Donald Sutherland
Donald McNichol Sutherland (born 17 July 1935) is a Canadian actor whose film career spans over six decades. He has been nominated for nine Golden Globe Awards, winning two for his performances in the television films '' Citizen X'' (1995) a ...
and
Susan Sarandon
Susan Abigail Sarandon (; née Tomalin; born October 4, 1946) is an American actorMcCabe, Bruce"Susan Sarandon, the 'actor'" ''Boston Globe''. April 17, 1981. Retrieved January 21, 2021. and activist. She is the recipient of various accolades, ...
. Palcy adapted ''A Dry White Season'' from the novel by South African writer
André Brink. The story focuses on the social movements of South Africa and the
Soweto
Soweto () is a township of the City of Johannesburg Metropolitan Municipality in Gauteng, South Africa, bordering the city's mining belt in the south. Its name is an English syllabic abbreviation for ''South Western Townships''. Formerly a s ...
riots, and was heralded for putting the politics of
apartheid
Apartheid (, especially South African English: , ; , "aparthood") was a system of institutionalised racial segregation that existed in South Africa and South West Africa (now Namibia) from 1948 to the early 1990s. Apartheid was ...
into meaningful human terms. Palcy was so passionate about creating an accurate story depicting the reality of apartheid that she risked her life traveling undercover to South Africa. To research the riots, she was introduced to the people of Soweto township by Dr Motlana (
Nelson Mandela's and
Desmond Tutu's personal physician), while she eluded the South African secret services posing as a recording artist.
Palcy became the first black female director produced by a major Hollywood studio and is the only black filmmaker who succeeded in making in the U.S. a narrative feature against apartheid on the silver screen during the 27 years of
Nelson Mandela's incarceration. The late Senator
Ted Kennedy
Edward Moore Kennedy (February 22, 1932 – August 25, 2009) was an American lawyer and politician who served as a United States senator from Massachusetts for almost 47 years, from 1962 until his death in 2009. A member of the Democratic ...
supported the Filmmaker. Brando's performance in the movie earned him his 8th and last Academy Award nomination for Best Supporting Actor and he received the Best Actor Award at the
Tokyo Film Festival
The is a film festival established in 1985. The event was held biennially from 1985 to 1991 and annually thereafter. Along with the Shanghai International Film Festival, it is one of Asia's competitive film festivals, and is considered to be the ...
. For her outstanding cinematic achievement, Palcy received the "Orson Welles Award" in Los Angeles. For the first anniversary of his election Mandela welcomed Euzhan Palcy in South Africa and granted her an exclusive interview that has yet to be discovered.
By 1992, Palcy veered away from the serious subject matter of her previous films to show the spirit and liveliness of her native
Martinique
Martinique ( , ; gcf, label=Martinican Creole, Matinik or ; Kalinago: or ) is an island and an overseas department/region and single territorial collectivity of France. An integral part of the French Republic, Martinique is located in ...
with ''Simeon'' (1992), a musical comedic fairytale set in the Caribbean and Paris. She remained in France to create her first feature three-part documentary,
Aimé Césaire
Aimé Fernand David Césaire (; ; 26 June 1913 – 17 April 2008) was a French poet, author, and politician. He was "one of the founders of the Négritude movement in Francophone literature" and coined the word in French. He founded the Par ...
, A Voice For History (1994) about the famed Martinican poet, playwright, and philosopher.
She then worked for Disney/ABC Studios, directing and producing an episode of ''
The Wonderful World of Disney
The Walt Disney Company has produced an anthology television series since 1954 under several titles and formats. The program's current title, ''The Wonderful World of Disney'', was used from 1969 to 1979 and again from 1991 to the present. The pr ...
'' entitled, ''
Ruby Bridges
Ruby Nell Bridges Hall (born September 8, 1954) is an American civil rights activist. She was the first African-American child to desegregate the all-white William Frantz Elementary School in Louisiana during the New Orleans school desegreg ...
'' (1998), the story of
Ruby Bridges
Ruby Nell Bridges Hall (born September 8, 1954) is an American civil rights activist. She was the first African-American child to desegregate the all-white William Frantz Elementary School in Louisiana during the New Orleans school desegreg ...
, the little New Orleans girl who was the first to integrate the public schools, immortalized in the painting by
Norman Rockwell
Norman Percevel Rockwell (February 3, 1894 – November 8, 1978) was an American painter and illustrator. His works have a broad popular appeal in the United States for their reflection of Culture of the United States, the country's culture. Roc ...
. President
Bill Clinton
William Jefferson Clinton ( né Blythe III; born August 19, 1946) is an American politician who served as the 42nd president of the United States from 1993 to 2001. He previously served as governor of Arkansas from 1979 to 1981 and agai ...
and Disney President,
Michael Eisner
Michael Dammann Eisner (born March 7, 1942) is an American businessman and former chairman and chief executive officer (CEO) of The Walt Disney Company from September 1984 to September 2005. Prior to Disney, Eisner was president of rival film st ...
introduced the film from the White House to American audiences. Palcy’s film won four awards, including The Christopher Awards, The Humanitas Prize, the National Educational Media Network Gold Apple and best performance Young actress award Young Artists Awards. For Paramount/Showtime Studios, Palcy directed ''The Killing Yard'' (2001), starring
Alan Alda
Alan Alda (; born Alphonso Joseph D'Abruzzo; January 28, 1936) is an American actor, screenwriter, and director. A six-time Emmy Award and Golden Globe Award winner, he is best known for playing Captain Benjamin "Hawkeye" Pierce in the war come ...
and
Morris Chestnut
Morris Lamont Chestnut (born January 1, 1969) is an American actor. He first came to prominence for his role as Ricky in the 1991 film ''Boyz n the Hood''. He has appeared in feature films and on television series, including the starring role of ...
. The drama is based on the true events surrounding the 1971
Attica prison riot
The Attica Prison Riot, also known as the Attica Prison Rebellion, the Attica Uprising, or the Attica Prison Massacre, took place at the state prison in Attica, New York; it started on September 9, 1971, and ended on September 13 with the high ...
, which had an indelible impact on the American prison system and jury process. The film won the
Silver Gavel Award
The Silver Gavel Award (also known as the ABA Silver Gavel Awards for Media and The Arts) is an annual award the American Bar Association gives to honor outstanding work by those who help improve comprehension of jurisprudence in the United State ...
from the
American Bar Association
The American Bar Association (ABA) is a voluntary bar association of lawyers and law students, which is not specific to any jurisdiction in the United States. Founded in 1878, the ABA's most important stated activities are the setting of aca ...
.
Later career
In 2005 Palcy returned to the documentary to direct ''Parcours de Dissidents'' ("The Journey of the Dissidents"), narrated by
Gérard Depardieu. The film tells the story of the forgotten history of “dissidents”, the men and women of Martinique and
Guadeloupe who left their islands between 1940 and 1943. In 2007 Palcy wrote and directed ''Les Mariées de I’isles Bourbon'' (The Brides of Bourbon Island) (2007), a romantic historical epic adventure.
In 2006, she wrote and directed the documentary ''Parcours de Dissidents'' (''The Journey of the Dissidents''), narrated by
Oscar
Oscar, OSCAR, or The Oscar may refer to:
People
* Oscar (given name), an Irish- and English-language name also used in other languages; the article includes the names Oskar, Oskari, Oszkár, Óscar, and other forms.
* Oscar (Irish mythology) ...
-nominated and French actor
Gérard Depardieu, about the unknown odyssey of the men and women from the islands of Martinique and Guadeloupe (FWI) many of who were trained at
Fort Dix,
New Jersey
New Jersey is a state in the Mid-Atlantic and Northeastern regions of the United States. It is bordered on the north and east by the state of New York; on the east, southeast, and south by the Atlantic Ocean; on the west by the Delaware ...
, during
WWII
World War II or the Second World War, often abbreviated as WWII or WW2, was a world war that lasted from 1939 to 1945. It involved the vast majority of the world's countries—including all of the great powers—forming two opposin ...
and fought throughout the liberation of France. On June 18, 2011, Palcy’s ''The Journey of the Dissidents'' (''Parcours de Dissidents'') was screened at the French Military School at the invitation of the French Minister of Defense and the Minister of Overseas Territories. A National Exhibition (''La Dissidence en Martinique et en Guadeloupe 1940–1945''), based on her film, was launched at the French National Staff Headquarters on July 7 and is currently exhibited simultaneously in everyone of the 101 Prefectures (equivalent of our Federal government building of every counties) along with the screening of her film.
Palcy wrote and directed the French three-hour
period piece
A historical drama (also period drama, costume drama, and period piece) is a work set in a past time period, usually used in the context of film and television. Historical drama includes historical fiction and romances, adventure films, and swas ...
set in the 17th century, ''
Les Mariées de I’isles Bourbon'' (''The Brides of Bourbon Island'') (2007). It tells of a romantic, historic epic action adventure where three women survive a harrowing ocean voyage from France to forcibly marry French expatriates on the island of
Réunion.
Palcy’s drive for the life and compassion for humanity inspire each and every project with which she is involved. Her passion spills into all areas of cinematic lexicon to include the animation, thriller, comedy and action genres. For Fox Studios, Palcy developed an animated feature, currently entitled ''Katoumbaza''. She is actively developing a feature film, on
Bessie Coleman
Bessie Coleman (January 26, 1892April 30, 1926) was an early American civil aviator. She was the first African-American woman and first Native American to hold a pilot license. She earned her license from the '' Fédération Aéronautique I ...
, for which she recorded the very last witness of the first African-American woman aviator journey in France, and an action comedy set in Los Angeles and Paris. Palcy has chosen ''Teaching Toots'', a comedy drama on illiteracy – a project close to her heart – to be her next film to co-produce and direct. Her interest in humanitarian work and supporting the younger generation has been known for years. Her last production has been ''Moly'', a biographical short on young disabled one-legged
Senegal
Senegal,; Wolof: ''Senegaal''; Pulaar: 𞤅𞤫𞤲𞤫𞤺𞤢𞥄𞤤𞤭 (Senegaali); Arabic: السنغال ''As-Sinighal'') officially the Republic of Senegal,; Wolof: ''Réewum Senegaal''; Pulaar : 𞤈𞤫𞤲𞤣𞤢𞥄𞤲𞤣𞤭 ...
ese filmmaker Moly Kane. The film was screened in Cannes to rapturous public acclaim. Palcy announced on stage that Moly Kane would receive the prosthetic leg of his dreams so that he could be free to film with his camera.
Style and themes
The geographical setting varies from project to project, yet Palcy's focus on Black culture remains constant. Her films stress the themes and issues that are continuous across the physical space that separates Martinique from France, from South Africa, from America.
Themes of
colonialism
Colonialism is a practice or policy of control by one people or power over other people or areas, often by establishing colony, colonies and generally with the aim of economic dominance. In the process of colonisation, colonisers may impose the ...
are present in Sugarcane Alley, A Dry White Season, and many of her other works. "Euzhan Palcy's two films Rue cases negres / Sugar Cane Alley (1983) and A Dry White Season (1989) share a set of thematic equivalences that represent postcolonial perspectives on Pan-African identities and experiences. In both instances the films focus is on the experiences of black communities and the atrocities they have suffered at the hands of their enslavers or oppressors."
Palcy often uses non professional actors in her films, and works with them to ensure a feeling of authenticity is maintained. In ''
Sugarcane Alley,'' many actors were actual workers from the sugarcane plantation, and Palcy had them live on set for two months prior to the shooting date. Palcy explains, “We did the shooting in the middle of a sugarcane plantation, we built that set, so I asked the people all around, the sugarcane workers, to bring their pigs, their cattle, to bring everything there, and I asked everyone to live in the house on the plantation. So for two months in advance they were there every day. They were there having fun barbecuing, playing.”
In ''
A Dry White Season
''A Dry White Season'' is a 1989 American drama film directed by Euzhan Palcy and starring Donald Sutherland, Jürgen Prochnow, Marlon Brando, Janet Suzman, Zakes Mokae and Susan Sarandon. It was written by Colin Welland and Palcy, based upon ...
'' Palcy wanted to get people from South Africa who were actually living in apartheid to act in these scenes. However, in order to get people from South Africa into Zimbabwe, many legal hurdles had to be leapt since South Africans weren’t allowed to cross into their neighboring country with conventional methods. Palcy decided to go the extra mile to fly the cast from South Africa to London on an “artist” visa, then from there fly the cast to Zimbabwe. Palcy explains the difficulty: “We couldn’t let any journalists get in because of all the South African actors we had, we had to make them go to England, take them from England, bring them back to Zimbabwe, because the Black South Africans didn’t have the right to have a passport, so in order to get a passport you had to be an artist… They said they had a deal to be in a play, so that was how they got their passports.”
Filmography
Film
Television
Awards and nominations
* 1983:
Venice Film Festival
The Venice Film Festival or Venice International Film Festival ( it, Mostra Internazionale d'Arte Cinematografica della Biennale di Venezia, "International Exhibition of Cinematographic Art of the Venice Biennale") is an annual film festival h ...
, Silver Lion, Best First Work for ''Rue cases nègres''
* 1983:
Venice Film Festival
The Venice Film Festival or Venice International Film Festival ( it, Mostra Internazionale d'Arte Cinematografica della Biennale di Venezia, "International Exhibition of Cinematographic Art of the Venice Biennale") is an annual film festival h ...
, UNICEF Award for ''Rue cases nègres''
* 1983:
Venice Film Festival
The Venice Film Festival or Venice International Film Festival ( it, Mostra Internazionale d'Arte Cinematografica della Biennale di Venezia, "International Exhibition of Cinematographic Art of the Venice Biennale") is an annual film festival h ...
, OCIC Award for ''Rue cases nègres''
* 1983:
Venice Film Festival
The Venice Film Festival or Venice International Film Festival ( it, Mostra Internazionale d'Arte Cinematografica della Biennale di Venezia, "International Exhibition of Cinematographic Art of the Venice Biennale") is an annual film festival h ...
, Golden Lion (nominee) for ''Rue cases nègres''
* 1984:
César Awards
The César Award is the national film award of France. It is delivered in the ' ceremony and was first awarded in 1976. The nominations are selected by the members of twelve categories of filmmaking professionals and supported by the French Min ...
, César, Best First Work (Meilleure première oeuvre) for ''Rue cases nègres''
* 1989:
Tokyo International Film Festival
The is a film festival established in 1985. The event was held biennially from 1985 to 1991 and annually thereafter. Along with the Shanghai International Film Festival, it is one of Asia's competitive film festivals, and is considered to be the ...
, Tokyo Grand Prix (nominee) for ''A Dry White Season''
* 1990:
National Coalition of 100 Black Women
The National Coalition of 100 Black Women, Inc. (NCBW) is a non-profit volunteer organization for African American women. Its members address common issues in their communities, families and personal lives, promoting gender and racial equity.
Hi ...
,
Candace Award
The Candace Award is an award that was given from 1982 to 1992 by the National Coalition of 100 Black Women (NCBW) to "Black role models of uncommon distinction who have set a standard of excellence for young people of all races". Candace (pronou ...
for Trailblazing
* 2001:
Cannes Film Festival
The Cannes Festival (; french: link=no, Festival de Cannes), until 2003 called the International Film Festival (') and known in English as the Cannes Film Festival, is an annual film festival held in Cannes, France, which previews new films o ...
, Sojourner Truth Award
*2002:
Silver Gavel Award
The Silver Gavel Award (also known as the ABA Silver Gavel Awards for Media and The Arts) is an annual award the American Bar Association gives to honor outstanding work by those who help improve comprehension of jurisprudence in the United State ...
by the
American Bar Association
The American Bar Association (ABA) is a voluntary bar association of lawyers and law students, which is not specific to any jurisdiction in the United States. Founded in 1878, the ABA's most important stated activities are the setting of aca ...
for ''The Killing Yard''
*2013: Cannes Classics official selection for ''Simeon''
Legacy and recognition
* 1984: First woman and first black director winner of a French Oscar
*1989: ''
Glamour Magazine
''Glamour'' is today an online women's magazine published by Condé Nast Publications. For many years a traditional hard-copy magazine, it was founded in 1939 and first published in April 1939 in the United States. It was originally called '' ...
,'' 10 Most Inspiring Women
*1994: John Guggenheim Fellowship for Creative Arts
* 1995:
Chevalier de l'Ordre national du Mérite
* 1997: Cinema Euzhan Palcy in
Amiens
Amiens (English: or ; ; pcd, Anmien, or ) is a city and commune in northern France, located north of Paris and south-west of Lille. It is the capital of the Somme department in the region of Hauts-de-France. In 2021, the population of ...
, France, movie theater named in her honor
* 2000: Martinique's first high school dedicated to film study was after her and she was presented with the Sojourner Truth Award at the 2001
Cannes Film Festival
The Cannes Festival (; french: link=no, Festival de Cannes), until 2003 called the International Film Festival (') and known in English as the Cannes Film Festival, is an annual film festival held in Cannes, France, which previews new films o ...
* 2004:
National Order of the Legion of Honour
The National Order of the Legion of Honour (french: Ordre national de la Légion d'honneur), formerly the Royal Order of the Legion of Honour ('), is the highest French order of merit, both military and civil. Established in 1802 by Napoleon B ...
Palcy is a Citizen of Honour of New York, Atlanta, New Orleans, and Sarasota, Fl.
* March 25, 2007, the
National Maritime Museum
The National Maritime Museum (NMM) is a maritime museum in Greenwich, London. It is part of Royal Museums Greenwich, a network of museums in the Maritime Greenwich World Heritage Site. Like other publicly funded national museums in the Unite ...
in London launched her first retrospective with the screening of ''Sugar Cane Alley''. Later that year the
British Film Institute
The British Film Institute (BFI) is a film and television charitable organisation which promotes and preserves film-making and television in the United Kingdom. The BFI uses funds provided by the National Lottery (United Kingdom), National Lot ...
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BBC #REDIRECT BBC #REDIRECT BBC
Here i going to introduce about the best teacher of my life b BALAJI sir. He is the precious gift that I got befor 2yrs . How has helped and thought all the concept and made my success in the 10th board exam. ...
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online poll on "The 100 Black Screen Icons" of the last 100 years ranked it number 3.
* October 2009, she received the Unita Blackwell Award in Las Vegas for the 35th anniversary of the National Conference of Black Mayors.
* December 2009, ''Sugar Cane Alley'', was selected for the third time by the French National Educational Organization (the organization that chooses the films from all over the world to be studied in French schools), breaking the record for any participating film in the history of the organization. In December 2009, Palcy was the patron of the 20th anniversary of the organization at the Cinémathèque (the French Museum of Cinema) with Minister of Culture Frédéric Mitterrand and director Costa Gavras. In 2010, she was the Honoree of France Black Art Awards, broadcast on France Television Group, and was the first recipient of the Art and Media Prize of the Gotha Noir de France (France Black Who’s Who) and in December 2010, she was honored at the Women’s Gala of 3rd World Black Arts Festival of Culture in Senegal, the biggest African festival.
* April 6, 2011, Palcy directed ''Le Film Hommage'' that introduced “France National Tribute to Aimé Césaire at the Pantheon” with the keynote speech of French President Nicolas Sarkozy in front of an audience 1,000 dignitaries. The event was broadcast live on the French National TV (France 2).
* May 14, 2011, French Minister of Culture
and Cannes Film Festival paid tribute to the director with the screening of ''Sugar Cane Alley'' in the prestigious Cannes Classics Series (Cannes official selection of the Masterpieces of the Century). Heralded as one of the most important independent film of the last 50 years ''Sugar Cane Alley'' is studied in most colleges and US universities (in Cinema studies, French studies, and African-American studies) In February 2009, ''Philadelphia Inquirer'' veteran film critic Carrie Rickey put ''Sugar Cane Alley'' in her top list of films that should be screened at the White House to keep hope alive.
* May 18, 2011, the Museum of Modern Art in New York City honoured her as "Filmmaker in Focus: Euzhan Palcy" (May 18–May 30), the first retrospective of her career and “first retrospective of a black woman filmmaker at the MoMA”. The Department of Film has acquired for its collection new 35mm prints of Palcy’s ''Rue Cases-Nègres'' and ''Siméon'' (1992), her Caribbean musical-comedy fairytale—which by the closing credits of its New York premiere at MoMA last Friday had literally sparked dancing in the aisles of the theater, said Ron Magliozzi, the assistant film curator of MoMA.
* September 12, 2011, the Director General of
, Irina Bokova, named Palcy in the international sponsoring committee for the Unesco program of 2011–13 -- “TAGORE, NERUDA and CESAIRE, for a reconciled universal”.
* September 28, 2011, Palcy received the Officer Medal of the National Order of Merit from French President Sarkozy at the Palais de l'Elysee.
* October 13, 2011, Palcy opened the 7th Women's Forum in Deauville.
*2011: Cannes Film Festival's Tribute to Euzhan Palcy
*2011: Elle.fr magazine's 17 Most Influential Women of the Planet
* 2013–present: National Committee for the Memory and History of Slavery (CNMHE), Member
*2013: First woman President of the Fespaco Grand Jury
*2013: Henri Langlois World Cinema Honor Award
*2013: Unveiling of the Euzhan Palcy road
*2015: Tribute to Euzhan Palcy by the American Cinematheque
*2016: Sabela International Recognition Award (South Africa Honorary Award)
*2018: Inductee on the Black Achiever's Wall of the International Slavery Museum of Liverpool for the Centenary of the Women's Vote in the UK.
*2019: The WRAP: 17 Women Who Revolutionized Hollywood (All-time list)
*2019: Inductee on the June Caribbean-American Heritage Wall of Fame
*2019: Montreal Black Film Festival Pioneer Award
*2021: Toronto International Film Festival 'Share Her Journey' Ambassador
*2022: