FORSAKEN

(L’abandon)

US Premiere | France | 2026 | Drama | 100 min | In French with English subtitles

Directed by: Vincent Garenq
Written by: Vincent Garenq, Alexis Kebbas, Mickaëlle Paty
Based on the Book by: Stéphane Simon
Produced by: France 3 Cinéma, Marion de Blaÿ, Stéphane Simon (Outside Films), François Kraus, Denis Pineau-Valencienne (Les Films du Kiosque), Cloé Garbay, Bastien Sirodot (Umedia)
Cinematography: Renaud Chassaing
Original Score: Nicolas Errera
Film Editing: Aurique Delannoy
Cast: Antoine Reinartz (Samuel Paty), Emmanuelle Bercot (Victoire Lanion), Emma Boumali (Bachira Saïdi), Nedjim Bouizzoul (Kader Saidi), Azize Kabbouch (Tahar Amara), Marie-Sohna Condé (Firmine), Sandy Lewis Godefroy (Fatima Saïdi), Mounira Barbouch (Malika), Barbara Belotner (Colette)
International Sales: Studio TF1

Synopsis

The fate of Samuel Paty is legendary in France. On October 16, 2020, the humble-yet-earnest history teacher was brutally murdered just steps from the middle school where he taught. Forsaken is the sober account of the eleven days leading up to that real-life tragedy. It all begins with Mr. Paty’s lesson on freedom of speech — a lesson on the Charlie Hebdo massacre involving cartoons lampooning the prophet Muhammad. Then with a schoolgirl’s lie, to cover-up the fact that she’d skipped school that day. Finally, with her father’s outrage, which unleashes a social-media firestorm. And one atrocity begets another.

Director’s bio

Writer-director Vincent Garenq made his first two shorts while a student at La Fémis film school in Paris, then went on to direct numerous episodes of various TV series, from 1994 to 2007. His first feature was the gay adoption comedy Comme les autres (2008). His subsequent films have been dramatic adaptations of real-life events. Guilty (2011), recounting the story of a man falsely accused of pedophilia, and The Clearstream Affair (2014), an exposé of shady multinational banking practices, were both nominated for César Awards for Best Adapted Screenplay. Kalinka (2016) tells the story of a 27-year murder investigation. Garenq then returned to television with the series Something to Hide (2020) and Tout pour Agnès (2023). Forsaken debuted, Out of Competition, at this year’s Cannes Film Festival.