Carlo Vogele's ICARE will defend Luxembourg's colours in the race for the 2023 Oscars
The animated feature ICARE by Luxembourg director Carlo Vogele, a co-production of Iris Productions with France and Belgium, was chosen by the National Selection Committee for the Oscars to represent the Grand Duchy at the 95e edition of Academy Awards, in the best strange filmr (International Feature Film).
The National Selection Committee for the Oscars, made up of representatives from associations and institutions in the Luxembourg audiovisual sector*, selected ICARE for its artistic and aesthetic qualities, as well as for its narrative, which, loosely based on Greek mythology, tells the story of the spirited young man who flies too close to the sun from the point of view of Icarus.
Through his eyes, the spectator discovers the injustices and cruelty of men along with the protagonist; this narrative choice enabled director Carlo Vogele to develop a personal reading of the myth.
ICARE is Carlo Vogele's first feature film. The screenplay was co-written by Isabelle Andrivet and Carlo Vogele.
Entering production in 2019, ICARE The Luxembourg team includes actors Sascha Ley (Pasiphaé) and Tommy Schlesser (Astérion) for the Luxembourg voices, as well as André Dziezuk (original music), Michel Dimmer (picture editing) and François Debatty (1er assistant director). In Luxembourg, the film was produced by Nicolas Steil and Katarzyna Ozga of Iris Productions.
ICARE was presented at the 2022 edition of the Luxembourg City Film Festival and has already been selected for several international festivals. The film was released in Luxembourg cinemas in April 2022.
From 2008 to 2015, director Carlo Vogele worked in Hollywood, helping to create films such as "Up", "Toy Story 3", "Cars 2", "Brave", "Monsters University" and "The Good Dinosaur". In addition to his work as an animator at Pixar, Carlo has made short stop-motion films that have won awards at numerous festivals.
ICARE will be submitted to the Oscars selection committee, which will in turn select the 5 foreign films for the Oscars ceremony, scheduled for 12 March 2023. The nominations in the "International Feature Film" category of the Academy Awards will be announced on 24 January 2023.
*The National Selection Committee for this year's Oscars is made up of seven people representing the audiovisual sector:
Aude-Laurence Biver (Actors.lu)
Nicole Dahlen, Cinémathèque de Luxembourg
Guy Daleiden, Film Fund Luxembourg
Alexandra Hoesdorff, Union luxembourgeoise de la production audiovisuelle (ULPA)
Alexis Juncosa, Luxembourg City Film Festival
Fred Neuen, Luxembourg Association of Producers of Animation and Immersive Experiences (ALPA/XR)
Laura Schroeder, Luxembourg Association of Directors and Scriptwriters (LARS)
Secretary: Yves Steichen, Centre national de l'audiovisuel
