Yesterday the 14th of March marked the opening of the 77th International Cannes Festival, which was opened by a powerful ceremony celebrating the strong women within the film industry.
The French actress Camille Cottin hosted the opening ceremony in which she invited five strong women to stand along with her: Greta Gerwig, Juliette Binoche, Meryl Streep and Zaho de Sagazan, setting the stage for yet another meaningful festival. It had been 35 years since Meryl Streep had graced the Cannes Red Carpet, congratulations were in order for the dancing queen who received a Palme d’Or d’honneur, handed to her by Juliette Binoche. The evening ended with a performance by Zaho de Sargazan who covered David Bowie’s ‘Modern Love’, a nod to Greta Gerwig’s ‘Frances Ha’ film that made her famous in 2012.
This year’s jury is led by industry titan, actress, and Barbie director Greta Gerwig. She is joined by a distinguished international panel: Turkish screenwriter and photographer Ebru Ceylan, lead actress in Scorsese’s Killers of the Flower Moon Lily Gladstone, French actress Eva Green, Lebanese director and screenwriter Nadine Labaki, Spanish director Juan Antonio Bayona (whose latest film The Snow Society was nominated for an Oscar), Italian actor Pierfrancesco Favino, Japanese director Hirokazu Kore-eda (Palme d’Or winner in 2018 for Shoplifters), and French actor Omar Sy. The jury will award the Palme d’Or to one of the twenty-two films in competition on Saturday, May 25th, during the closing ceremony.
Expected to receive a Palme d’Or d’Honneur are George Lucas, renowned for the legendary Star Wars saga, and, for the first time ever, a collective honor will be bestowed upon Studio Ghibli, recognizing its significant legacy in the film industry.
Highly anticipated films this year include Francis Ford Coppola’s Megalopolis, a $120 million passion project by the 70s Palme d’Or-winning director. The Apprentice will depict the story of a young Donald Trump played by Sebastian Stan, just in time for this years' Presidential elections.
Furiosa: A Mad Max Saga marks the return of George Miller following his big success to the first film in 2015. Anya Taylor Joy, Chris Hemsworth and Tom Burke all star in his new film.
The Seed of the Sacred Fig by Iranian director Mohammed Rasoulof is in competition. It will prove to be the anticipated drama within the film but also at the festival since the director was sentenced to eight years of jail for 'collusion against national security' but is set to attend the film's premiere.
Additionally, rumors suggest that a list of French actors and filmmakers accused of sexual abuse will be publicly revealed during the event. There is also a threat of a strike by festival workers due to a proposed change to French labor law.
With the anticipation building and an electric atmosphere, this year’s Cannes Festival promises to be eventful and memorable.
