Adapted from the eponymous best-selling novel written by Muriel Barbery, The Hedgehog stars newcomer Garance Le Guillermic as Paloma, a precocious and suicidal 11 year-old who befriends Renée, the secretly erudite concierge of her upscale building (Josiane Balasko, A French Gigolo, Too Beautiful For You, French Twist). An acute observer of her dysfunctional family, Paloma sees an ally in Renée, who frequently reads alone with her cat. A window opens up in Renée’s solitary existence when she is courted by one of her new tenants, the elegant widower Kakuro (Togo Igawa, Speed Racer, Memoirs of a Geisha). As she gets to know Kakuro, Renée softens up and starts to see the possibility of love in her life, while her friendship and her words of wisdom start to change Paloma’s bleak outlook on the adult world.

COLCOA / Saturday April 24 at 3:00pm
West Coast Premiere
In French with English subtitles

Written and directed by: Mona Achache
Based on the novel by: Muriel Barbery
Cinematography by: Patrick Blossier
Editing by: Julia Grégory
Music by: Gabriel Yared
Produced by: Anne-Dominique Toussaint
Production Company: Les Films des Tournelles
Coproduction: France 2 Cinéma, Pathé Distribution / Pathé International, Topaze Bleue

Young filmmaker MONA ACHACHE studied theater and literature before working in film. She worked as assistant director on various features, including Father and Sons (COL•COA 2005). She was also script supervisor on fiction and documentary projects. Before The Hedgehog, she wrote and directed two critically acclaimed short films, popular in the international film circuit: Suzanne (COL•COA 2006), and Wawa (2007), Golden Bear and Audience Award at the Ebensee Festival of Nations. She is also an actress, most recently in Eden is West (COL•COA 2009). She is currently writing a second feature.