| Elles | |
|---|---|
| Directed by | Małgorzata Szumowska |
| Starring | Juliette Binoche, Joanna Kulig, Anais Demoustier |
| Distributed by | Memento Films |
| Release date(s) | September 9, 2011 (Toronto) February 2012 (France) |
| Running time | 92 minutes |
| Country | France |
| Language | French, Polish |
Co-written by Szumowska and Tine Byrckel, Elles, formerly called Sponsoring, is the story of Anne (Juliette Binoche), a journalist for ELLE in Paris, who is researching an article about female student prostitution. Although these young women are naturally not keen on publicity, she persuades two students into talking to her: the provocative Alicja (Joanna Kulig), an ambitious economics student who left Poland to further her education; and the subtle Charlotte (Anaïs Demoustier), enroled in a Parisian business school, determined to leave her modest French countryside background behind. Where Anne is expecting misery and distress, she discovers freedom, pride, and empowerment. As Anne’s professional curiosity in the two liberated women becomes personal, she starts to question her own sexuality.
Elles premiered at the 2011 Toronto International Film Festival and is due to open theatrically in France in February 2012.