Coralie Fargeat Pulls ‘The Substance’ From Camerimage Lineup Over Festival Director’s Controversial Op-Ed About Women Cinematographers

French filmmaker Coralie Fargeat has pulled her latest feature The Substance from Poland’s Camerimage Film Festival following the fallout of a controversial op-ed written by the festival’s founder and head Marek Żydowicz.

Fargeat posted a short statement on her X account this morning announcing the move. The filmmaker also said the film’s DoP Benjamin Kračun would not be traveling to the cinematography-focused festival. Kračun had been scheduled to take part in Q&A sessions at the festival. 

“After discovering the highly misogynistic and offensive words of the director of the Camerimage Film Festival, I have decided to pull ‘The Substance’ from the festival (and [director of photography] Benjamin Kračun has decided not to attend),” Fargeat wrote. 

“‘The Substance’ is about the impact of exactly these types of behaviors on our world. We shouldn’t tolerate them anymore. We send our support to all involved in the festival and hope this decision will help create a much needed change.”

In his much-criticized article titled ‘Time for Solidarity’, published last week in the craft magazine Cinematography World, Żydowicz outlined the path he believes the cinematography-focused festival can take as the wider film industry continues to change at speed. The greatest change, Żydowicz hypothesized, was the growing prominence of women cinematographers and directors. The thesis of Żydowicz’s article, however, was quickly denounced by industry professionals and unions who said it was sexist. 

The parts that have drawn widespread criticism online are a portion where Żydowicz writes: “‘Can we sacrifice works and artists with outstanding artistic achievements solely to make room for mediocre productions?”

Another highlighted by filmmakers such as Reed Morano and Fabian Wagner read: “While EnergaCamerimage strives to acknowledge the contributions of women in cinematography, it also aims to maintain artistic integrity. Change? Yes, but let’s remain decent and honest. It’s about rapid evolution, not a fanatical revolution that destroys the cathedrals of art and throws out its sculptures and paintings.”

Żydowicz’s article was promptly denounced by multiple industry organizations such as the British Society of Cinematographers (BSE), which said Żydowicz’s words represented an “outdated notion of male superiority in the field and equate fairer gender representation with a drop in artistic values.” Filmmaker Steve McQueen also stepped back from a scheduled apperance at the fest where set to introduce his last feature Blitz and receive an honorary award.

The BSC’s statement was quickly supported by the American Society of Cinematographers, which reshared the letter on its website. Similar statements have since been shared by almost a dozen industry unions, including the Canadian Society of Cinematographers, the Society of Camera Operators, and the Women Cinematographers Network Of Germany, Austria & Switzerland. 

Camerimage is set to kick off this weekend in Torun, Poland with a screening of Blitz. McQueen had also been set to receive an honorary award at the festival. Camerimage is set to close with a screening of Universal’s Wicked remix starring Ariana Grande. Cate Blanchett will head the competition jury.