Glamor and Grit Collide in Akaki Popkhadze’s San Sebastian Bound Debut ‘In The Name of Blood’ — Watch Trailer (EXCLUSIVE)
variety.comCallum McLennan The surface glamor and beauty of Nice is peeled away from the off in Akaki Popkhadze’s debut feature “In The Name Of Blood” (“Brûle le sang”) which premieres in San Sebastian’s New Director section. “Nice is a city where the rich and the poor live side by side.” the director tells Variety. “The poor neighborhoods are just a few minutes by tramway from the center.
No need to drive hours to see the dirt. I think the particularity of Nice is that poor people live surrounded by palm trees, beautiful landscapes, super cars, casinos, a seaside full of tourists and it can make people dizzy and give them the wrong life-goals.
For me all this is just appearance.” The opening shot tracks from a postcard scene of Nice’s curved bay out to show a chain link fence, the high rise apartments and the highway of an oft ignored side to Nice.
From here a tale of violence, faith and family unfolds. Produced by Sébastien Aubert and Leslie Jacob for Cannes-based Adastra Films, the film has pre buys from Canal+ and Ciné+ and is co-produced by Belgium’s Beside Productions, Georgia’s Gemini and Austria’s Elly Films with Urban Sales handling sales. “From my very first meeting with Akaki, I was impressed by his determination.
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