(05/24/08) CANNES '08 DISPATCH | Just Like the Weather, Biz Prospects Mostly Cloudy On Fest's Final Weekend - Perhaps it's appropriate that the documentary "Roman Polanski: Wanted and Desired" received a special screening at this year's Cannes Film Festival, considering that its firm distribution deal really does seem like something special. During the latest Sundance Film Festival, "Wanted...
(05/24/08) CANNES '08 NOTEBOOK | And Then You Die: Charlie Kaufman's Synecdoche, New York - In terms of the political/social engagement of competition films at the 61st Cannes Film Festival, it isn't too much of a stretch to say that Charlie Kaufman's "Synecdoche, New York" makes Arnaud Desplechin's dysfunctional family drama "A Christmas Tale" look...
(05/22/08) CANNES '08 NOTEBOOK | The Revolution By Night: Steven Soderbergh's "Che" - The one overwhelming message coming from the competition films at the 61st Cannes Film Festival is: shit's messed up. "Waltz With Bashir" digs into the never-fully-healed wounds of war. In Matteo Garrone's "Gomorra," organized crime isn't an aberration; it's just...
(05/21/08) CANNES '08 DISPATCH | Voices from the Croisette: Woody Allen, James Gray, and the Dardennes on the Delicate State of Personal Cinema Today - "It's always a neck and neck race with red ink," quipped Woody Allen at the end of a Martinez lunch with a few journalists earlier this week here at the Cannes Film Festival. While discussing his acclaimed new film, "Vicky...
(05/21/08) CANNES '08 BIZ DAILY | Film Department's Gill and Sacker Chat At AmPav, Arthouse Deals With Fortissimo, Jaman Takes Two, and More - Continuing coverage of the Marche du Film in Cannes, indieWIRE reports on the latest deals and news from the Croisette. The Film Department's Mark Gill and Neil Sacker sat down with Mike Goodridge at the American Pavilion to update on...
(05/20/08) CANNES '08 NOTEBOOK | Auteur Fatigue, "Gomorra" Pops and Wayward Youths - Good, but not great. Accomplished, but not amazing. A consistent thread is emerging within this year's Cannes selection: Name directors are showing up with solid work that displays their talents, but doesn't transcend them or spin them into new, novel...
(05/20/08) CANNES '08 BIZ DAILY | Spike Lee's "Miracle," Young Europeans, Cyrte Buy, Fortissimo and John Woo, and More - Continuing coverage of the Marche du Film in Cannes, indieWIRE reports on the latest deals and news from the Croisette. Tuesday saw Spike Lee discussing his latest film, "Miracle at St. Anna," Zentropa announcing their "Young Europeans" project, Holland's Cyrte...
(05/19/08) CANNES '08 BIZ DAILY | Europe Day, Another Pick-Up For IFC, Optimum Takes "Whiteout," Celluloid Options "UBIK," The Hungarian Pavilion, and More - Continuing coverage of the Marche du Film in Cannes, indieWIRE reports on the latest deals and news from the Croisette. Monday afternoon saw the 6th Europe Day program take place, IFC acquired the North American rights to "The Chaser," Optimum...
(05/18/08) CANNES '08 NOTEBOOK | Desplechin's "Tale" Stands Out In Competition, "Three Monkeys," "24 City," Also Impress - Rainy days here in Cannes may have dampened morale, but the films, and a much-needed burst of sunshine on Sunday morning, have boosted critics' spirits. Aside from "Blindness," Fernando Meirelles' apocalyptic opener, which received a mixed response, this year's competition...
(05/18/08) CANNES '08 BIZ DAILY | Weinstein Takes "The Alchemist," Reliance Gives Funding To Hollywood, MGM Discusses New Plans, the Korean Pavilion, and More - Continuing coverage of the Marche du Film in Cannes, indieWIRE reports on the latest deals and news from the Croisette. The Weinstein Company buys the rights to best-selling book "The Alchemist," Reliance announced plans to fund Hollywood production companies, IFC...
(05/16/08) CANNES '08 BIZ DAILY | Reliance Talks Big Numbers, Weinsteins Acquire "Lake" & Make Asian TV Deal, GreeneStreet Takes "Long Time," The Argentine Pavilion, and More - Continuing coverage of the Marche du Film in Cannes, indieWIRE reports on the latest deals and news from the Croisette. India-based media company Reliance Big Entertainment commits to a $1 billion slate, the Weinsteins acquired "Eden Lake," and inked a...
(05/15/08) CANNES '08 DISPATCH | Serious, Silly Intersect In First 24 Hours of 61st Cannes Festival - While attendees sat inside the Cannes Film Festival's Debussy theater on Wednesday watching the morning press screening of Fernando Meirelles' harrowing "Blindness," nearby on the Croisette dozens of costumed pandas danced with Jack Black to hype the animated festival entry,...
(05/15/08) CANNES '08 BIZ DAILY | Celluloid Follows "Prophet," MTV Wants Their Elephant Eye, Canadians All Business, and More - Continuing coverage of the Marche du Film in Cannes, indieWIRE reports on the latest deals and news from the Croisette. MTV acquires "Planet B-Boy from Elephant Eye, Celluloid Dreams begins pre-sales of Jacques Audiard's latest, Jada Pinkett- Smith brings her...
(05/14/08) CANNES '08 BIZ DAILY | IFC Takes Two, Salt Launches, Fortissimo Busy, Delpy Pre-Sales, Ukranian Pavilion, and More - Continuing coverage of the Marche du Film in Cannes, indieWIRE reports on the latest deals and news from the Croisette. IFC has acquired a pair of Cannes festival entries, Arnaud Desplechin's "A Christmas Tale" and Josh Safdie's "The Pleasure of...
(05/13/08) CANNES '08 DISPATCH | Rain or Shine? Cannes Market Opens Amidst Changing Forecast - Rainy skies and industry-wide gloom-and-doom hover over this year's Cannes, but the nearly 11,000 registrants attending this year's festival and Market can't all be depressed. With thousands of new films on offer, from auteur visions to star-driven genre pictures, and...
(05/13/08) CANNES '08 BIZ DAILY | Cannes Market Kickoff, Fortissimo Gets Killer Film, AmPav Turns 20, and More - In the first of a series of daily dispatches focusing on the business side of the 2008 Cannes Film Festival: indieWIRE talks to Marche du Film director Jerome Paillard; Fortissimo acquires the rights to "Gigantic;" TFI is set to show...
(04/29/08) indieWIRE | Cannes Adds Five Films to '08 Fest Roster - Fernando Mereilles's "Blindness" will in fact open the 2008 Festival de Cannes on May 14th -- screening in competition -- organizers have just announced. Rounding out the Official Selection for the upcoming event, planners added a few additional films to...
(04/18/08) L'affiche: Inspired by Lynch - Cinema poster artist Pierre Collier has created the poster and visual identity for the 61st Festival de Cannes, inspired by a photograph by David Lynch. The festival will run May 14th through 25th....
(05/25/07) FIRST PERSON: MARCUS HU | Cannes Festival Fixture Sits One Out; '08 Fest Awaits Her Return - Since 1989, my mom, Evelyn has been my trusty sidekick, best friend and confidant to accompany me to Cannes every consecutive year since. I am sure many of you have seen this 4'10" Asian American mom whizzing down the...
(04/19/07) Tous Les Cinemas du Monde - The third Tous les Cinemas du Monde focuses on the emerging film industries around the world spotlighting cinematic diversity. Poland and Slovenia will be two countries highlighted this year as well as Colombia, again spotlighting Latin America. Mexico, Peru, Venezuela...
(04/19/07) More "Blueberry" - Reps for Wong Kar Wai's Cannes opener "My Blueberry Nights" offered another peek at the movie in a film still featuring Norah Jones and Jude Law. The world premiere -- the first film from a Chinese director to open...
(04/19/07) Le Marche du Film - As of April 14, over 3,000 companies from 80 contries have confirmed their participation in the Marche du Film (Cannes film market), an event taking place simultaneously with the festival that is focused on the international motion picture business. 10,000...
(04/19/07) Atelier de la Cinefondation - The Festival de Cannes' Atelier de la Cinefondation, a program which helps young filmmakers bring their film projects to fruition, announced this year's group of 15 projects that will participate in the program that supports young filmmakers bring their projects...
(04/19/07) Celebrating 60 Years - As part of its 60th anniversary celebration, the Festival de Cannes has commissioned 35 directors to participate in a collective film "To Each His Own Cinema," a collection of three-minute films focused on the "movie theater." In the words of...
(04/19/07) Cannes Fest Unveils Official Selection - The official selection for the 60th Festival de Cannes has been unveiled. The festival will open with Wong Kar-wai's "My Blueberry Nights" starring singer Norah Jones. Get the complete lineup at indieWIRE.com....
(04/18/07) 60th Cannes Poster, lineup coming soon - Nine famous faces, photographed at last year's Festival de Cannes, are pictured in the poster for the upcoming French fest. During the 59th festival, Magnum photographer Alex Majoli shot numerous notables in mid jump for the poster celebrating the...
(04/16/07) Loach Wins Cannes 59 - Ken Loach, winner of the Palme d'Or at the 59th Festival de Cannes. For more photos from indieWIRE's coverage of Cannes, visit the special iPOP section. Photo by Eugene Hernandez/indieWIRE...
(04/01/07) Cannes '06: Wrap up - Catch up with indieWIRE's coverage of the 2006 Festival de Cannes in a special section at indieWIRE.com....
(05/22/05) Kusturica Questions Quality of Cannes Films - As the Festival de Cannes closed, jury president (and filmmaker) Emir Kusturica was quoted as saying that the films were not as good as he anticipated they would be. As reported by Reuters, he said: "We had a selection where...
(05/21/05) The Palme d'Or Goes to... - Jean-Pierre and Luc Dardenne tonight in Cannes. [Photo by Eugene Hernandez/indieWIRE]...
(05/21/05) Cannes 2005: The Winners - 8:05 p.m. (local time), indieWIRE: Cannes | The awards have been presented. Palme d'Or: "L'Enfant", directed by Jean-Pierre and Luc Dardenne Grand Prix (runner-up): "Broken Flowers," directed by Jim Jarmusch Prix de la Mise en Scene (Best Director): Michael Haneke...
(05/21/05) Miranda July Wins Critics Week Prize - "Me And You And Everyone We Know", directed by Miranda July, has been awarded the Grand Prix de la Semaine de la Critique. The Prix SACD screenwriting prize was shared by Uchida Kenji for "Unmei Janai Hito" (A Stranger of...
(05/21/05) Haneke Film Also Wins Ecumencal Jury Award - Michael Haneke's "Caché" won the 31st Ecumenical Jury award at the 2005 Cannes Film Festival. The jury gave a special commendation to S. Pierre Yameogo "Delwende"....
(05/21/05) "Cache" Wins Critics Award - Michael Haneke's "Cache" was awarded the FIPRESCI Critics Prize for a film in or out of competition at the 58th Cannes Film Festival. In the Un Certain Regard Section the award went to Amat Escalante's "Sangre" and Ryoo Seung-wan's "Crying...
(05/21/05) "Mr. Lazarescu" Wins Un Certain Regard Prize - Cristi Puiu's "Moartea Domnului Lazarescu" (The Death of Mr. Lazarescu) from Romania has won the Prix Un Certain Regard for best film in the festival's Un Certain Regard section. The jury included president Alexander Payne along with Betsy Blari, Gilles...
(05/21/05) "Cidade Baixa" Wins Youth Jury Prize - In Cannes, Sergio Machado's "Cidade Baixa" (Lower City) was awarded the 24th Prix de la Jeunesse, the youth prize of the Festival de Cannes. The first feature from Brazilian director Sergio Machado was selected by a jury of nine young...
(05/21/05) Tommy Lee Jones explores Tex-Mex border at Cannes - Tommy Lee Jones explores often the brutal life along the U.S.-Mexican border, playing a Texas ranch foreman in a powerful film he also directs that made its world premiere at the Cannes Film Festival on Friday. "The Three Burials of...
(05/21/05) Winner! The Palm Dog... - Among the prizes awarded in Cannes this weekend...a prize for the top canine in a Cannes film -- The Palm Dog. Reuters reports: The winner, who appeared in Mongolian film "The Cave of the Yellow Dog," was not in Cannes...
(05/21/05) Trying to Pick A Winner... - The Associated Press weigns in with a look at the competition titles vying for prizes, writing that the press seemed underwhelmed, it singles out a few contenders: In the leading pack are Canadian director David Cronenberg's "A History of Violence"...
(05/21/05) Big In Cannes, Unknown Back Home? - In a Hollywood Reporter piece from Reuters, Anne Thompson reports on the tough road facing some of the notable competition filmmakers when they try to take their films to theaters back in the States: The Cannes perennials -- Jarmusch, Gus...
(05/21/05) Antonio Campos Wins Cinndation Prize - Antonio Campos from NYU won the 1st Prize in the Cinendation competition at the 2005 Cannes Film Festiva for his film, "Buy It Now". 18 films were in competition this year for the award, judged by jurors Edward Yang, Chantal...
(05/20/05) Press Lunch - At the Carlton Beach this afternoon, Sam Shepard and Wim Wenders (pictured left to right in the center), talk with reporters about their Cannes competition film "Don't Come Knocking," during a Sony Pictures Classics lunch. [Photo by Eugene Hernandez/indieWIRE]...
(05/20/05) UPDATE: Sony Classics Gets Haneke's Latest - Sony Pictures Classics confirmed that it has indeed acquired Michael Haneke's "Cache" (Hidden). The film is considered a front-runner for the Cannes Palme d'Or which will be awarded tomorrow. The film was hotly pursued by numerous, including many of New...
(05/20/05) Hou Hsiao Hsien's "Best Moments" - [Cannes Dispatch and photo by Eugene Hernandez] In the Cannes competition, for this sixth time, this year with "Three Times", filmmaker Hou Hsiao Hsien explained that the English translation of his new film's title is a bit misleading. Dubbed...
(05/20/05) Cannes Mayor Welcomes Guests at Proveneal "Aoili" - [Photo by Brian Brooks/indieWIRE] Yesterday afternoon's event was not quite the glitzy raucous party that one might assume should come out of a "Morning After" report, but it was so nice, it deserves the attention. Cannes Mayor, Bernard Brochand...
(05/19/05) Keep An Eye On... "Cache" - [Cannes Dispatch by Eugene Hernandez, photo by Brian Brooks] The closest thing to a real nail-biter bidding war among U.S. based buyers here in Cannes is the battle for Michael Haneke's "Cache" the Cannes competition entry that first screened a...
(05/19/05) The Morning After: The "Sin City" party - [Article by Brian Brooks, Photo by Eugene Hernandez/indieWIRE Wednesday night's going out scene was all about finding an invitation to the "Sin City" party in Cannes, at least if you were not at some hush-hush non-invite party at a...
(05/19/05) Wells Online - Worth reading for nice Festival de Cannes tidbits and perspective (not to mention some nice pix) is Jeffrey Wells' "Hollywood Elsewhere." The writer is everywhere, posting often, usually from the same table that indieWIRE's Brian Brooks has staked out in...
(05/19/05) Dargis Back in High School - Writing in her Cannes journal, NY Times critic Manohla compares the festival to high school: True but embarrassing: Cannes is, in some major respects, a replay of high school. So many of the same issues and agonies apply here. Just...
(05/19/05) Defending "Sin City" - The Associated Press reports on "Sin City" in Cannes, where Frank Miller defended the film: "Sin City" isn't typical fare at the Cannes Film Festival, more accustomed to art house flicks than Frank Miller's dark world of tough guys in...
(05/19/05) Robert Rodriguez in Cannes - In Cannes, shortly before yesterday's "Sin City" press conference, Robert Rodriguez walks through the Palais to meet the press. [Photo by Eugene Hernandez/indieWIRE]...
(05/19/05) Sony Says Merry Christmas - Sony Pictures Classics has nabbed that Cannes competition entry "Joyeux Noel" (Merry Christmas) for distribution in the U.S., U.K., Italy and Latin America, according to Screen International. The pact marks the first Cannes official selection acquisition to close during this...
(05/19/05) Wenders Comes Home, To America - [Cannes Dispatch by Eugene Hernandez] In Wim Wenders and Sam Shepard's new collaboration, the Cannes competition entry "Don't Come Knocking", a hard living actor making a western disappears from the set and returns home to his mother in Montana where...
(05/18/05) The Earls of Palme, in Session at Cannes - The main competition at this festival might be compared to an exclusive club with a significant number of permanent members. (A gentleman's club, mainly, since shockingly few women - none this year - are invited to join.) Some filmmakers pass...
(05/18/05) Horrible histories - This is William Hurt's first visit to Cannes in 20 years. He last flew here in 1985, promoting his Oscar-winning performance in Hector Babenco's Kiss of the Spider Woman. He was a conquering hero: a movie star with a glittering...
(05/18/05) Gritty film shows China opening up, director says - A gritty Chinese drama in competition at the Cannes Film Festival explores the clash between generations and grim life in industrial hinterlands where millions of families were forcibly moved in the 1960s. The director of "Shanghai Dreams," Wang Xiaoshuai, has...
(05/18/05) Miranda July On Buying Sensible Shoes at Cannes - Filmmaker Miranda July, at Cannes with her excellent feature, Me and You and Everyone We Know, blogs about making the rounds at Cannes doing interviews, getting not so free clothes, and buying shoes....
(05/18/05) Dardenne Brothers Discuss Working As A Team - Belgian directors Jean-Pierre and Luc Dardenne, at Cannes with their latest film, "The Child," discuss their formative years and collaborative process of co-directing and co-writing together. Manohla Dargis reports for the New York Times....
(05/18/05) Palm Gets Two in Cannes - Palm Pictures has announced a pair of acquisitions here at the Marche du Film in Cannes. The company has acquired North American and Caribbean rights to Asia Argento's "The Heart Is Deceitful Above All Things" and Michael Almereyda’s "William Eggleston:...
(05/18/05) Strand Makes a Deal for "Ellie" - Strand Releasing has acquired Scott Coffey's "Ellie Parker", announcing the pact here at the Festival de Cannes. The company made a North American deal for the film, which premiered at the Sundance Film Festival earlier this year. Written and directed...
(05/18/05) Keep An Eye On..."The Power of Nightmares" - [Cannes Dispatch by Eugene Hernandez] A few days before I saw Adam Curtis' "The Power of Nightmares", the heads of two different distribution companies separately told me they consider it to be one of the most important documentaries ever made....
(05/17/05) "Popped" On the Scene in Cannes - indieWIRE Editor Brian Brooks has been snapping memorable moments from the parties that dominated the first half of the Cannes Film Festival. His first round of shots are available now on indieWIRE.com....
(05/17/05) The Morning After: The Focus Features party and several we missed - [Photo by Brian Brooks/indieWIRE] Monday night was definitely a promising one party-wise. There was a New Line event in the early evening for "The History of Violence" and there was a Brazilian bash at a villa in the hills...
(05/17/05) After a cool start, critics say Cannes picking up - Film critics were left cold by early showings at the Cannes Film Festival this year, but things finally warmed up with the return of tried and tested veterans at the world's top cinema showcase. Informal gradings by writers and commentators,...
(05/17/05) American way of life attacked in films at Cannes - The dark underside of the United States has taken center stage in several films at Cannes this year, capped on Monday with a scathing attack of past and present racism in America by Danish director Lars von Trier. There are...
(05/17/05) Dargis: Enough of the Old Art-house Crowd! - Concerned by an industry person's comment to her that the new Michael Haneke film would be tough to market to an older art-house crowd, in her NY Times journal, Manohla Darghis wrote: Well, I think it's time to kill off...
(05/17/05) Mexican sex story tipped for top prize - Star Wars Episode III may be the blockbuster of the moment. But the movie festival-goers were fighting tooth and nail to see yesterday was not George Lucas's latest epic, but a small Mexican film that, along with Michael Haneke's Caché,...
(05/17/05) Scott on Cannes Favorites (So Far) - In The New York Times, critic A.O. Scott weighs in with a look at the first half of Cannes 2005. But first he reminds readers that Cannes, this year in particular, has the feel of an old boys' club, with...
(05/17/05) Producers on the Move - 19 producers from 19 European countries are participating in the EFP's "Producers on the Move" program here at the Cannes film Festival, highlighting new producers that already have one successful project under their built (the complete list of participants...
(05/17/05) Cronenberg's Film Full of Violence, Sex - Early scenes in "A History of Violence" show a loving family in small-town Indiana. This being a David Cronenberg movie, you suspect their lives are about to get very, very twisted. A.P. reports....
(05/16/05) The Morning After: The "Star Wars" Premiere Party - [Article by Brian Brooks/indieWIRE, photo by Eugene Hernandez/indieWIRE] Alright, it isn't quite the morning, but it is nevertheless the day after last night's world premiere of "Star Wars Episode III: The Revenge of the Sith." The build-up to the...
(05/16/05) Catching Up With Cannes - It was a busy first weekend at the Festival de Cannes and given that some of you may be logging onto this blog for the first time since Friday, we thought we'd post links to a few of the original...
(05/16/05) Von Trier: "I am an American" - [Cannes Dispatch by Eugene Hernandez] Lars von Trier's latest film in his USA trilogy, "Manderlay", drew more questions about his decision to make movies about a place that he has never visited. During a press conference this morning in Cannes,...
(05/15/05) ThinkFilm Gets "Bomb" - In Cannes today, ThinkFilm announced its acquisition of Steven Silver and Andrew Quigley's "Diameter of the Bomb", a film described as "focusing on a suicide bomb that shook Jerusalem one summer morning in June 2002." The Cannes Market title includes...
(05/15/05) Darth Vader's Breathing - The sound of heavy Vader breathing was played over the loudspeakers outside The Palais in the hour leading up to the start of tonight's gala screening of the final "Star Wars" chapter in Cannes. Stormtroopers lined the red carpet,...
(05/15/05) Lucas Talks "Sith": Tragedy of Vader Parallels History - [Cannes Dispatch by Eugene Hernandez] "If you're not with me, you are my enemy," threatens Hayden Christensen, as the newly christened Darth Vader in "Star Wars, Episode III: Revenge of the Sith". "Only a Sith deals in absolutes," responds Ewan...
(05/15/05) The Morning After: LAFF Yacht soiree and MTV Party - [Photo by Brian Brooks/indieWIRE] Partying got serious Saturday, beginning in the evening with a cocktail party for the newly branded distributor Picturehouse on the Majestic pier right off the Croisette. Then, it was the Canadian reception at the Canada...
(05/15/05) Participant Productions Acquires North American Rights to 'Fast Food Nation' - Participant Productions, the Los Angeles based entertainment company founded in 2004 by eBay pioneer and philanthropist Jeff Skoll, has acquired North American rights and taken an equity stake in the upcoming film, "Fast Food Nation" from HanWay Films, which is...
(05/15/05) Sony Classics Loves Almodovar - [Cannes Dispatch by Eugene Hernandez, Photo by Brian Brooks] Sony Pictures Classics will once again be the North American home for Pedro Almodovar with his latest project, "Volver" (Return) marking his sixth feature that will be released on this side...
(05/15/05) Weinsteins show in Cannes there's life after Disney - Bob and Harvey Weinstein are proving there is life after Disney. The Hollywood powerbrokers' new company, formed when they agreed in March to split from Disney's Miramax Films, has come to the annual Film Festival in Cannes with deals in...
(05/15/05) Before the Films Begin, a Dose of Cannes Pomp - Does this festival still matter? Can Cannes retain its cachet in a world glutted with festivals? These questions are sure to be posed and pondered over the next 10 days. They are every year at this time, as journalists, movie...
(05/15/05) Reporter's log: Cannes Film Festival - The movers and shakers of the film world are on the French Riviera for the 58th Cannes film festival. The BBC's Caroline Briggs reports from Cannes on the atmosphere of the world's most prestigious film event....
(05/15/05) Shock invite for Nightmares director - The BAFTA ward-winning "The Power Of Nightmares," by British documentary-maker Adam Curtis, is one of the political heavyweights in the (Cannes) Official Selection. The powerful film looking at how fears over an organised Al-Qaeda terror network have come to dominate...
(05/15/05) Downey, Kilmer Step Into Gumshoe Roles - Robert Downey Jr. and Val Kilmer have turned gumshoe with "Kiss Kiss, Bang Bang," a murder mystery that could have been called "Nudge Nudge, Wink Wink" for its relentless yet loving tweaks at Hollywood film-noir conventions. The film, which debuted...
(05/15/05) "Star Wars" in Cannes - At this afternoon's press conference in Cannes, Samuel L. Jackson, George Lucas, Natalie Portman and Hayden Christensen. [Photo by Eugene Hernandez/indieWIRE]...
(05/15/05) Cannes Tackles American Box-Office Issues - The tough reality of European cinema is that about 70 percent of ticket sales here are for American movies. And despite a few recent cross-border successes such as "The Chorus" or "A Very Long Engagement," the figures are not budging....
(05/14/05) The Director's Fortnight Trailer - In recent years, Film Festivals have created trailers that run before every film to help brand themselves and often to thank the festival sponsors. Many times, it's the festival themself that should be thanking us for sitting through them. I...
(05/14/05) Manhola and Tony Blog for the NY Times (Sort of) - The New York Times calls it a journal and the rest of the world might call it a blog...but whatever its name, NYT critics Manhola Dargis and A.O. Scott are offering daily dispatches from Cannes in a nicely done special...
(05/14/05) The Morning After: Pitt Belts it Out - "Last Days" star Michael Pitt showed off his other talent as a lead singer/guitarist during the party for the film in Cannes Friday night following the gala premiere (with actor Ryan Donowho on drums). Party attendees, including Sonic Youth's...
(05/14/05) Corliss Has A Bad Day At Cannes - Writing his third diary from the Cannes Film Festival for TIME Online, critic Richard Corliss didn't find much to cheer about yesterday, dissing Cannes entries "Last Days", "Where the Truth Lies" and "Kiss Kiss Bang Bang." The subheadline to his...
(05/14/05) Deal for Reygadas' "Batalla" - Mexican competition entry "Batalla En El Cielo" (Battle In Heaven) from filmmaker Carlos Reygadas has been acquired by Tartan USA, according to trade reports in Variety and Screen today. Screen indictated that Tartan had already pre-bought the film for UK...
(05/14/05) Haneke on Guilt - [Cannes Dispatch by Eugene Hernandez, photo by Brian Brooks] In Cannes for the eighth time, his fourth festival in competition. French filmmaker Michael Haneke unveiled his latest, "Caché" (Hidden) on Saturday morning. The film is the story of a French...
(05/14/05) Will Woody Make a Deal? - [Cannes Dispatch by Eugene Hernandez] Buyers have been buzzing about Woody Allen's latest, "Match Point", since its premiere here in Cannes on Thursday. The head of one studio specialty division told me that evening that the price for the film,...
(05/13/05) Pitt, Van Sant and Gordon at "Last Days" Cannes Conference - "Last Days" star Michael Pitt, director Gus Van Sant and Sonic Youth's Kim Gordon, who also stars in the film, pictured just prior to the press conference in the Palais de Festival today (Friday) in Cannes. Press shy Van...
(05/13/05) Atom Egoyan Gets Racy in New Film - Atom Egoyan's new film, "Where the Truth Lies," might be too racy for U.S. censors. The film, which features sex and orgy scenes with stars Colin Firth and Kevin Bacon, premiered at Cannes. Erik Kirschbaum reports for Reuters....
(05/13/05) Recalling Kurt Cobain - [Cannes Dispatch by Eugene Hernandez, Photo by Brian Brooks] In Gus Van Sant's "Last Days", which had its press screening this morning ahead of tonight's premiere, Michael Pitt stars as Blake, a musician who looks and lives a lot like...
(05/13/05) Trigger Street Unveils "The Sasquatch Dumpling Gang" - "It's great to be involved with the Trigger Street gang in a effort to make a truly great film that revolves around a pile of Sasquatch poo," said "Napoleon Dynamite" producer Jeremy Coon, in announcing a deal with TriggerStreet Independent...
(05/13/05) DAILIES: Von Trier, Innaritu, Woody, Lynch and More - Each day in Cannes, insiders pop into the lobby of one of the many grand hotels here to pick up one of the many festival dailies printed here at the festival. Screen International, Variety, The Hollywood Reporter and other papers...
(05/13/05) HBO/New Line Venture Launched as Picturehouse; Slate Unveiled - This morning in Cannes, Bob Berney and the founders of the new HBO/New Line venture unveiled plans for their new venture. The company has been named Picturehouse. Its first feature release is Gus Van Sant's "Last Days", the first production...
(05/12/05) Proud Of How His Latest Film Turned Out, Woody Allen Meets The Media - [Cannes Dispatch by Eugene Hernandez, Photo by Brian Brooks] His age showing a bit, Woody Allen may be quite hard of hearing these days but he still knows how to make the international press corps laugh. And judging from his...
(05/12/05) The film US TV networks dare not show - There will be no red carpet for Adam Curtis when his film "The Power of Nightmares" receives its gala screening at the Cannes Film Festival on Saturday. There would be no point: his film has no leading ladies who could...
(05/12/05) Rampling ramps up an age-old debate - Charlotte Rampling, the formidably poised actor who stars in this year's Cannes film festival opening movie, yesterday called Hollywood's attitude to women of a certain age "barbaric". Charlotte Higgins reports in The Guardian....
(05/12/05) Iraqi Film at Cannes for First Time - For an Iraqi filmmaker on location in his homeland, one of the biggest hassles was getting hold of a key prop: a statue of Saddam Hussein. "Kilometre Zero" is the first Iraqi film competing at the Cannes Film Festival. Director...
(05/11/05) Weinsteins Go for "Stormbreaker" - Announcing a second deal in less than 24 hours, The Weinstein Company is making its presence known in Cannes. The Weinsteins have nabbed the $40 million production, "Stormbreaker," to be directed by Geoffrey Sax, making it the first acquisition of...
(05/11/05) Odyssey In the Mix With New Killer Pic and More - Killer Films will produce Helen Hunt's directorial debut "Then She Found Me", described as a story about "identity, connection, the meaning of betrayal and the happy accidents that ultimately define our lives. The film is set to shoot this fall....
(05/11/05) A Revamped Cannes With A Focus on Heavyweights - Cannes returns this year with a lineup of international heavy hitters such as Lars Von Trier ("Manderlay"), Jim Jarmusch ("Broken Flowers"), Atom Egoyan ("Where the Truth Lies"), David Cronenberg ("The History of Violence"), Wim Wenders ("Don't Come Knocking"), and Gus...
(05/11/05) Cannes Films Embrace The Dark Side of Life - The Cannes Film Festival started today with a slate of darker than usual films to bring a shadowy buzz over the sunny skies of the Côte d'Azur. Dark entries include: Dominik Moll's "Lemming", the story of two couples whose lives...
(05/11/05) New Companies In Focus: Berney and Weinsteins - [Cannes Dispatch by Eugene Hernandez] With the Cannes Film Festival kicking off tonight here in France, insiders are already buzzing about the emergence of two new companies. The new Weinstein Company, Harvey and Bob Weinstein's post-Miramax company, has made a...
(05/10/05) HBO Film Goes to Cannes - The HBO film "Last Days" by director Gus Van Sant is among the 20 competing for the prestigious Palme d'Or at the Cannes Film Festival this week. Based on Kurt Cobain's life, the film will hit the big screen this...
(05/10/05) A Former Rail Worker "Chugs" into Cannes with £400 Short - Ben Crowe, a 27-year-old ex-GNER employee, with no formal film training is heading to the Cannes festival after his £400 short was selected for competition. His film, "The Man Who Met Himself", is about a private eye investigating a suicide....
(05/10/05) Music on the Beach - Cannes organizers will again present the Cinéma de la Plage on the beach near the Palais des Festivals. The venue is a welcome addition with a large drive-in movie screen and comfortable beach chairs. In addition to a screening of...
(05/10/05) Talking About the Ads - One of the distinctive aspects of a walk down the Croisette in Cannes is the giant movie ads and billboards erected throughout the city, many affixed to the sides of classy hotels for the 2 week run of the festival....
(05/10/05) The "Orgy of Glitz" - While perhaps not as glamorous as it was "back in the day," Cannes still packs star power. CNN calls the Festival de Cannes an "Orgy of Glitz" in a report on the opening of the 2005 edition of the festival:...
(05/09/05) Winterbottom Set for Europe Day - Filmmaker Michael Winterbottom has been tapped as the guest of honor at the Cannes Film Festival's "Europe Day", on Tuesday May 17th. The festival annnounced today that Winterbottom will participate in a debate on the topic, "European films in the...
(05/09/05) Screen test - It's Europe's biggest film festival and draws the attention of the entire world. But what's it really like at Cannes? We talk to seven Brits very much on the inside of the French Riviera's most glamorous event. Jason Solomons, Vanessa...
(05/09/05) Arthouse directors capture Cannes - The 58th Cannes Film Festival opens on Wednesday, with this year's contest already being touted as a battle of the arthouse heavyweights. Previous Palm d'Or winners Gus Van Sant, Lars von Trier, Wim Wenders and the Dardenne brothers are back...
(05/09/05) Cannes Weather? - Like many others in the film biz, indieWIRE is its packing its bags for the trip to Cannes (we'll be there on Wednesday morning). A quick peek at the Cannes weather forecast for the week (via Yahoo) shows that we...
(05/09/05) A Dozen Buzz Films From Cannes 2005 - In an article entited, "Sun, Sea and Sin," published Friday in The Guardian, Peter Bradsaw offered a few tips on his must-see films for Cannes 2005, previewing the "12 films people will be talking about all year." Not surprisingly topping...
(05/09/05) Ebert on Cannes - An attendee of the Festival de Cannes since 1972, critic Roger Ebert took a look back at the festival in his 1987 book, Two Weeks in the Midday Sun: A Cannes Notebook, examining at the first 40 years of the...
(05/06/05) Death trip -- Gus Van Sant's "Last Days" - Gus Van Sant's new film is about Kurt Cobain's last days. Or is it? Even the director doesn't seem sure. The haunting Last Days opens and closes with a recording of Jancquin's La Guerre, a powerful 14th-century French chorale piece....
(05/06/05) Cannes to honour director Lucas - "Star Wars" creator George Lucas will be honoured at the Cannes film festival, where he will receive the prestigious Festival Trophy. The latest "Star Wars" movie, "Revenge of the Sith," will receive its world premiere at the festival on 15...
(05/04/05) Cannes Adds to '05 Lineup - Completing the Official Selection for the 2005 Festival de Cannes, organizers have announced a handful of additional titles for the upcoming event, running from May 11 - 22 in France....
(04/27/05) Celluloid Dreams Acquires Fortnight Selection "Room" - Paris based international sales company Celluloid Dreams has acquired all international rights for Kyle Henry’s American drama "Room," it was announced today by producer Jesse Scolaro. "Room" was recently announced as an official selection of Directors’ Fortnight at the 2005...
(04/27/05) Indian actress Nandita Das to serve on Cannes Film Festival jury - Actress Nandita Das will travel next month to France to sit on the Cannes Film Festival jury, the second Indian star to serve since former Miss World Aishwarya Rai in 2003, a family member said. Das, who is currently in...
(04/27/05) Dillon to appear in Cannes movie - Actor Matt Dillon is appearing in one of 21 movies being showcased at the Cannes film festival's Directors' Fortnight, from 11 May. The actor stars in "Factotum" - a US, German and Norwegian co-production - about a hard-drinking labourer. The...