Members Guilty of Sexual Offenses Considered To Be Expelled By French Film Guild

The Société Civile des Auteurs, Réalisateurs, Producteurs (ARP) said in a statement that, although it is not an adjudicator of such allegations, “as an organization we must take into account the fact that our profession, because of the power it yields, can open the door to reprehensible excesses.

Published: 星期二,11月 12, 2019 21:42 下午 GMT-07:00

Kunal Kothari

Even though the #MeToo movement may have died down in one way but some cases continue to pop up that surprise one and all every day. Only yesterday, we reported about how director Roman Polanski was accused by actress Valentine Monnier from early days and further was followed by other allegations made by Adele Haenel.

Following the same, France’s authors, directors and producers guild said Tuesday that it will consider sanctions against any member being investigated for or found guilty of a sexual offense. According to a report in Variety, The Société Civile des Auteurs, Réalisateurs, Producteurs (ARP) said in a statement that, although it is not an adjudicator of such allegations, “as an organization we must take into account the fact that our profession, because of the power it yields, can open the door to reprehensible excesses. These can’t, in any case, be justified, nor can they be tolerated. That’s why the board of the ARP will propose during the next administrative council that, from now on, any member who has been convicted of a sexual offense be expelled and any member under investigation be suspended” from the guild.

The organization’s next board meeting is to take place on Monday. The ARP is one of France’s most powerful film guilds, with an administrative board that includes Oscar-winning director and honorary president Claude Lelouch, Radu Mihaileanu, Costa Gavras, Olivier Nakache, Eric Toledano and Jean-Paul Salomé.

The guild’s statement came amid the stir created by Haenel’s accusation that director Christophe Ruggia had sexually harassed her for several years when she was a young girl and Monnier’s allegation that Roman Polanski raped her 44 years ago. Both men strongly deny the allegations leveled against them.

Without naming anyone, the ARP said that it “strongly supports all victims of moral and sexual violence.”

The Société des Réalisateurs de Films, one of France’s guilds representing directors, has already expelled Ruggia.