Continued growth over the past three years has led France Film Distribution to expand its management roster and set up an international sales division, says vp Roger Khayat.

France Film Distribution has hired former Telefilm Canada distribution analyst Di-Ann Laurier as director of its Canadian Television Sales division. Laurier will also develop the company’s international sales division.

Lise Dandurand, formerly a contract employee, has joined the company on a full-time basis as director, cinema and marketing. She is responsible for theatrical releases and sponsorships.

Earlier, Michael Mosca, former Quebec operations director for Cineplex Odeon, had been named director, Canadian Video division.

Khayat says France Films, which has real estate interests including Theatre St-Denis, intends to distribute four films in the English Canadian market this year, mainly Canadian titles including Robert Tinnel’s Kids of the Round Table. The company distributes about 15 Canadian and foreign-language films annually in the French-track Quebec market and between 60 and 75 releases in home video.

France Film Distribution plans to release three of the top entries from this year’s Cannes Film Festival: Mathieu Kassovitz’s La Haine, winner of the best director award and a major box office hit in France, Xavier Beauvois’ N’oublie pas que tu vas mourir, winner of the Jury Award, and Tony Gatlif’s Mondo, winner of the Telerama Junior Award. LRB