SECRETS OF STATE (Secret Défense) Espionage/Thriller France, 2008 In French with English subtitles 35mm/Scope 2.35 :1/ Color/Dolby Digital DTS/100 min Directed by Philippe Haïm Written by: Philippe Haïm, Julien Sibony Cinematography by: Jerôme Almeras Editing by: Sylvie Landra Original Music by: Alexandre Azaria Produced by: Yves Marmion Production Company: UGC YM Co-produced by: France 2 Cinéma, France 3 Cinéma International sales: UGC DISTRIBUTION 24, avenue Charles-de-Gaulle 92200 Neuilly-sur-Seine Tel: +33 1 46 40 44 00 www.ugc.fr With: Gérard Lanvin (Alex), Vahina Giocante (Diane/Lisa), Nicolas Duvauchelle (Pierre), Simon Abkarian (Al Barad), Rachida Brakni (Leïla/Chadia), Mehdi Nebbou (Ahmed), Aurélien Wiik (Jérémy) www.secretdefense-lefilm.com/ Starring Gérard Lanvin (The Taste of Others, Choice of Arms) as Alex, director of the DGSE (the French equivalent of the CIA), Secrets of State is an espionage thriller about the war on terror. The film follows the parallel stories of Diane (Vahina Giocante) and Pierre (Nicolas Duvauchelle), two troubled young people who get involved on each side of the conflict: Diane as an ex-prostitute turned Arab translator for the DGSE and Pierre as a small time drug dealer who converts to Islamic extremism in prison. Playing Gérard Lanvin’s arch-nemesis is Simon Abkarian (Casino Royale, The Truth about Charlie) as the elusive terrorist mastermind Al-Barad. ABOUT PHILIPPE HAÏM After a first career as a successful conductor and composer for stage productions and for films such as Bertrand Tavernier’s The Bait, Philippe Haïm started writing and directing films in 1994. His first short Descente was shown in more than 30 French and international film festivals and was followed by a first feature film, Barracuda, starring Jean Rochefort and Guillaume Canet (Tell No One, COL•COA 2007). He then wrote the screenplay to the thriller/comedy Like a Fish Out of Water, starring Monica Bellucci and Tchéky Karyo, and directed a second film, The Daltons, a Western comedy adapted from the French comic book Lucky Luke. PRESS “…Espionage thriller Secrets of State tosses a fresh glass of Bordeaux in the face of anyone still ordering a side of "freedom fries." (…) Based on extensive research involving seven credited consultants, the script provides a more detailed portrait of the undercover agency than has been previously featured onscreen…A truly gut-wrenching finale set in the Paris metro adds to the pic's pulsating tone…(Variety) “Secrets of State should appeal to audiences who liked the tone and content of The Interpreter, The Manchurian Candidate remake, or Syriana…A passage in which various specialists - played by the film's seven eminent real-life consultants - weigh in on a coded threat, gives viewers a taste of the crucial decisions constantly being made based on a combination of educated guesses and hard-won research.” (Screen International) Followed by a Q&A with co-writer/director Philippe Haïm