Laura Piani’s Jane Austen Wrecked My Life is more than just a great rom-com — it’s a funny and moving portrait of grief, writer’s block, and a woman learning to move forward. Alex Heeney digs into how Agathe’s emotional arc is mirrored in the film’s structure, how the frame composition is key to the film’s humour and storytelling, and how Piani reimagines Jane Austen archetypes for 2025.

🎁 Want more films that linger? Grab my free companion guide to a recent hidden gem — complete with a streaming guide, intro video, and prompts to deepen your viewing.
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For detailed show notes, visit https://seventh-row.com/2025/05/22/ep-172-jane-austen-wrecked-my-life-laura-piani/

The 2025 Cannes Film Festival kicks off today...and the question on everyone's mind is: what will be the great movies?

Mostly, people look to the Cannes Competition (the films that compete for the Palme d'Or) to find the best films. But it's a lesser-known fact that many amazing films screen in the festival's sidebars.

And many of the best films in cinema history have screened in the festival's sidebars. In fact, Chantal Akerman's Jeanne Dielman, which was named the greatest film of all time in the 2022 Sight & Sound poll did not screen in competition! It screened in the Directors' Fortnight.

So on today's episode, Alex peels back the curtain on how all the different parts of the Cannes Film Festival work together. And she talks about the amazing films you've heard of (and some you probably haven't) that have screened outside the festival's competition. And she talks about some of the films she's excited for this year.

Finally, Alex talks about some of the films she's excited for in this year's competition, and how they were already making fantastic films years ago that were hiding out in the festival's sidebars.

*** Become a Seventh Row Insider to stay updated on the best films at Cannes this year and in past years that you might not otherwise stumble upon

*** Interested in picking up Seventh Row's ebooks on Lynne Ramsay, Joachim Trier, Joanna Hogg, Debra Granik, or Céline Sciamma? They're available exclusively on Seventh Row. Peruse the collection here: http://seventh-row.com/ebooks

Listen to the Women at Cannes Podcast Season

Listen to the Women at Cannes episode on Kelly Reichardt

For detailed show notes, visit https://seventh-row.com/2025/05/13/ep-171-navigating-cannes-beyond-the-competition/

If you look back on the last year, how many African films have you watched?

And how does this compare to the other international films you've seen from other continents?

Chances are, you're seeing way more films from every other continent than from Africa. That's not your fault. That's how the film industry works.

So on today's episode, Alex talks about why it's so hard to see African films and what you can do if you'd like to add more of them to your cinematic diet.

**Become a Seventh Row insider: http://email.seventh-row.com

**If you'd like to join Reel Ruminators in May to watch an exquisite work of queer South African Cinema, sign up here: http://seventh-row.com/reelruminators