By the Grace of God

Winner of the Silver Bear, Grand Jury Prize, at the 69th Berlin International Festival, 'By the Grace of God' is based on true events and recounts how the Catholic Church hid for almost 30 years the horrific cases of sexual abuse perpetrated by Father Bernard Preynat in Lyon, France.

Alexandre Guérin lives quietly with his wife and children. A fervent believer, attends Sundays with his family on Sundays. One day, Alexandre discovers that two other men, François (Denis Ménochet) and Emmanuel (Swann Arlaud) also attended the St. Luc summer camp where Father Preynat committed these repeated sexual assaults, and that they, too, are victims of his crime. The three men, all of whom have struggled to handle the trauma caused by Father Preynat, band together to begin a letter writing campaign to the Catholic Church. Alexandre is horrified when he discovers that the church knew of Preynat's crimes but did nothing, and this horror only deepens when he discovers that Preynat is still allowed to be around children despite the church's promises. The three men decide to tern to the police to finally force the church to confess to covering up the molestation case for years.

'By the Grace of God' is written and directed by François Ozon ('In the House', 'Swimming Pool').