Pallade Veneta - French director accused of abusing star Haenel goes on trial

Christophe Ruggia is accused of sexually assaulting the star of "Portrait of a Lady on Fire" in the early 2000s when she was between 12 and 15 and he was in his mid to late 30s.

The Ruggia case is one of a string that have raised questions about sexual violence in French society, particularly in the arts world.

"We're talking about a famous actor jeopardising her career" by making these accusations, said Yann Le Bras, Haenel's lawyer.

Ruggia, 59, once a leader of the French directors' union, has denied all the charges against him, although he admits to committing "errors".

- Saturday encounters -

Haenel, 35, is an iconic figure in France after becoming the first prominent actor to speak out against "complacency" towards sexual abuse in the film industry.

In 2019, she went public with a description of the sexual assault she allegedly suffered at the hands of Ruggia, accusing the director of subjecting her to "constant sexual harassment" from the age of 12 to 15, including "forced kisses on the neck" and touching.

Ruggia directed Haenel in the 2002 movie "The Devils", a tale about an incestuous relationship between a boy and his autistic sister abandoned by their mother. It was her first film role and she was 12.

The film contains sex scenes between the children and close-ups of Haenel's naked body. Excerpts are due to be shown at the trial.

The actress told investigators about sequences that made her feel "very uncomfortable", and others that were "violent".

Members of the crew told investigators of their "unease" with Ruggia's behaviour towards the young actor on set, calling it "invasive" and "inappropriate".

"It's not right, they look like a couple," said one of the director's assistants.

Between 2001 and 2004 the teenager went to see the man who told her he had "created" her nearly every Saturday.

She accused him of finding a pretext to get close to her during the encounters at his place. He caressed her thighs, then touched her intimately. "He would breathe hard" and "kiss me on the neck," she has said.

While Ruggia has denied he molested Haenel, he pointed to the "sensuality" of the 12-year-old and admitted "playing the Pygmalion" after discovering her.

He struggled to explain what they did for hours during their meetings, recalling that he used to give her "a snack" before taking her home to her parents.

In a court document seen by AFP, the investigating magistrate said Haenel's accusations were "precise and consistent" and that she had suffered psychological consequences from the assaults.

Potentially aggravating circumstances were the considerable age difference between Ruggia and Haenel, and the "psychological control" the director exercised over the young actor.

If found guilty of sexual assault of a minor, he faces up to 10 years in prison and a fine of 150,000 euros ($159,000).

- 'Spitting in the face' -

The accusations stunned the French film industry, which had been slower than Hollywood to react to the #MeToo movement.

In 2020, Haenel made a noisy exit at the industry's Cesars award ceremony in protest against a prize for veteran director Roman Polanski, who is wanted by the US over statutory rape allegations.

"Distinguishing Polanski is spitting in the face of all victims," she told The New York Times.

The actor, who has won two Cesars -- the French equivalent of an Oscar -- said she was leaving the industry last year over what she said was its complacency towards sexual predators.

Cinema legend Gerard Depardieu, 75, is to stand trial in March accused of sexually assaulting two women, and also risks a second trial after he was charged in 2020 with the rape of an actor in 2018 when she was 22 and anorexic, all of which he denies.

Actor Judith Godreche said this year two French directors -- Benoit Jacquot and Jacques Doillon -- had sexually abused her when she was a teenager. Both deny the charges.

O.Mucciarone--PV