Chocolat is a 2000 romance film based on the novel of the same name by Joanne Harris, and was directed by Lasse Hallstrm. Adapted by screenwriter Robert Nelson Jacobs.
Chocolat tells the story of a young mother Vianne Rocher, played by Juliette Binoche, who arrives at the fictional1, repressed southern French village of Lansquenet-sous-Tannes with her sixyear-old daughter and opens La Chocolaterie Maya, a chocolate shop across from the church, just as the town is preparing to observe Lent. The parish priest is horrified2, especially since Vianne keeps her tempting3 shop open on Sundays. In time, the arrival of the mother/daughter team and their shop transforms the conservative and religious locals into open-minded, fun-loving people.
The film was shot in the village of Flavigny-sur-Ozerain in Burgundy, France, and on the Rue4 De Lancienne Poste in Beynac-et-Cazenac on the Dordogne River in Dordogne, France. The river scenes were filmed at Fonthill Lake at Fonthill Bishop5 in Wiltshire, England and interior scenes at Shepperton Studios, Surrey, England.
The film grossed some $152,699,946 worldwide, on a production budget of $25 million.
The film was nominated for many awards, including 5 Academy Awards including Best Picture, Best Actress , Best Original Music , Best Screenplay - Adapted and Best Supporting Actress . Among significant awards won for work on this picture were the Art Directors Guild6 award, 2001, for Excellence7 in Production Design, the Bogey8 Award given by the German journal Blickpunkt: Film, based on audience numbers in a certain time, the Audience Award, 2001, of the European Film Awards, for Juliette Binoche, and the Screen Actors Guild award 2001, to Judi Dench for Outstanding Performance by a Female Actor in a Supporting Role. The film also attracted numerous BAFTA nominations9 and Rachel Portmans score was nominated for a Grammy Award.