Controversy and protests dogged the Academy in the months running up to the ceremony. The entire board of directors of the César Academy resigned on 13 February 2020,[1] in response to complaints over the opaqueness of the process and the powerlessness of normal Academy members, who do not vote for nor otherwise exercise any control over the leadership of the Academy.[2] The other issue of protest was the 12 nominations received by Roman Polanski's J'Accuse (An Officer and a Spy in English), the most nominations of any eligible film. French feminists protested heaping honors on Polanski, who was convicted of raping a minor in California in 1978 but never served his sentence, and has additionally been accused of other incidents of rape.[3][4][5][6]
Winners and nominees
The nominees for the 45th César Awards were announced on 29 January 2020.[7][8][9][10]
Polanski as well as other crew members of An Officer and a Spy did not attend the ceremony.[5] No one was there to accept the award on Polanski's behalf.[11][13]
