The Directors' Fortnight doesn't have a prize, but works closely with Europa Cinémas to attribute a label of quality to a European or Mediterranean film, in order to facilitate its circulation in these countries via the Europa Cinemas network. "All films are born free and equal" Pierre Kast Directors' Fortnight was founded in 1968: French society is in turmoil, but at Cannes the Festival goes on... before being interrupted by a handful of angry filmmakers, among them François Truffaut and Jean-Luc Godard. The cause of these incidents: Henri Langlois's eviction as director of the Cinémath?que Française. Not content to bring the festival to a premature close, the filmmakers obtain the reinstatement of Langlois and at the same time found the Société des Réalisateurs de Films (SRF), under whose aegis the Directors' Fortnight is to be born... The members of the SRF, and, among them, its president, Robert Enrico, and vice-president, Jacques Doniol-Valcroze, heatedly debate the very idea of the Fortnight: is it appropriate to present films as part of the Cannes Film Festival, even if it is in a sidebar program for films of diverse origins? The partisans of the festival prevail, endorsing the idea of a non-competitive Fortnight refusing all forms of censorship and diplomatic considerations, serving as a showcase for all international film industries. All films are born free and equal: we must help them to remain so.
