Judith Godrèche, an actor who has accused two high-profile directors of raping her as a teenager, will address France’s most prestigious film awards ceremony on Friday in an unusual move aimed at breaking what she calls the “omertà” surrounding the abuse of women and girls in the industry, reports The Guardian.
Godrèche, whose autobiographical hit TV show about the grooming of a 14-year-old girl has sparked a national debate, will take to the stage at the César awards, the French equivalent of the Oscars, which is broadcast live on television.
Godrèche, 51, has accused the directors Benoît Jacquot and Jacques Doillon, the former partner of the late singer and actor Jane Birkin, of rape and sexual assault when she was a teenager.
She has claimed Jacquot, an acclaimed arthouse director, groomed her in full sight of the French film industry and journalists when they became a couple after he cast her in his 1987 film Les mendiants (The Beggars). At the time she was 14 and he 39.
The actor has also accused Doillon of requiring her to perform 45 takes of an unscripted sex scene with him when she was a 15-year-old during the shooting of his 1989 film La fille de 15 ans (The 15 Year Old Girl).
After Godrèche told her story in the French press, several other actors came forward with allegations of sexual assault and harassment.
Jacquot has denied the accusations and claimed all sexual relations were consenting. Doillon has also denied the accusations, describing them as “lies”.
The French film industry has also been shaken by numerous allegations against the actor Gérard Depardieu – already under investigation after a rape accusation – the latest of which emerged last week when a film assistant accused him of sexual assault in 2014.