'Artist' wins Lumiere best pic

PARIS -- Gaul's kudos season began Friday with Michel Hazanavicius' "The Artist" winning best film and actress for Berenice Bejo in the Lumieres Honours, in france they equal to the Golden Globes. The pic, that has been with an award-winning spree since bowing at Cannes, and it is nommed for six Golden Globes, outperform other Cannes game titles competing for that Lumieres best film jerk: Pierre Schoeller's "The Minister," Eric Toledano and Olivier Nakache's hit comedy "Intouchables," Bertrand Bonello's "Apolonide" and Aki Kaurismaki's "Le Havre," champion from the Louis Delluc prize, that is passed out by French experts. "The Artist," that was created by Thomas Langmann's La Petite Reine, was launched Stateside in November through the Weinstein Co. Competing against Hazanavicius, Bonello and Kaurismaki, Maiwenn acquired helmer on her third feature, "Polisse," a gritty ensemble drama focusing on cops your child protection unit. Omar Sy, who stars opposite Francois Cluzet in "Intouchables," won actor, beating out "The Artist's" Jean Dujardin, among other strong challengers. Before his breakthrough performance in "Intouchables," Sy was most widely known in France like a smallscreen comic on "SAV," a regular comedy reveal that airs on Canal Plus. Sy also starred in Nakache and Toledano's previous two films, "Individuals Happy Days" and "So Happy Together." "Intouchables," Gaul's second greatest B.O. hit ever, was created by Quad Films and co-created by Gaumont. Weinstein Co. has acquired the film for multiple areas, including U.S. distribution and remake privileges. Denis Menochet nabbed newcomer for his part in "L'ensemble des Adoptes," a household dramedy that marks the directorial debut of thesp Melanie Laurent ("Inglourious Basterds") while three of "Apollonide's" thesps, Alice Barnole, Adele Haenel and Celine Sallette, shared the feminine newcomer prize. Quebec helmer Denis Villeneuve's heart-wrenching drama "Incendies," with different abide by Wajdi Mouawad, won for foreign film within the French language. A vital success, "Incendies" repped Canada in last year's foreign-language film Oscar race. Happening throughout the Unifrance's small-market, Rendez-Vous, the Lumieres Honours are chosen on by foreign correspondents located in Paris. Contact the range newsroom at news@variety.com