In parallel to the red carpet galas and the celebrity schmoozing that characterizes the Cannes Film Festival, the Cinéfondation iniative will work with fledgling filmmakers to get their projects seen by the attending throngs of film professionals, critics and festival programmers. Cinéfondation was created in 1998. Its mission is based on three complementary strategies: The Cinéfondation Selection, which presents movies from film schools in the framework of the Official Selection; The Cinéfondation Résidence, which hosts twelve young directors in Paris each year to help them finalize the script of their first or second film and The Cinéfondation Atelier, which invites around fifteen international directors and their producers to Cannes to help them arrange additional funding to complete their projects. The filmmakers are selected on the merit of their projects.  

This year, for the Cinéfondation Selection, 16 graduate films will be screened, including two animated movies, representing eleven countries and three continents Overall 1,589 films were viewed, originating from 360 film schools in 82 countries. The jury, headed by director Michel Gondry, will announce the three Cinéfondation Prizes on May 20.

This year, the Cinéfondation Atelier has selected 15 projects from 15 countries. The directors of the projects will take residency in Cannes for several weeks, where  individual meetings will be organized to help them arrange additional funding to complete their films. Participating young filmmakers (listed in alphabetical order by country of origin) include Pablo Reyero (Argentina), Huang Weikai (China), Alice Winocour (France), George Ovashvili (Georgia),  Michalis Konstantatos (Greece), Bálint Kenyeres (Hungary), Mohamed Al-Daradji (Iraq), Elad Keidan (Israel),  Fabio Mollo (Italy), Celso García (Mexico), David Verbeek (Netherlands), Daniel & Diego Vega (Peru),  Bogdan Mustata (Romania), Deniz Ergüven (Turkey) and Alvaro Brechner (Uruguay). For more information, visit: www.festival-cannes.com/en/cinefoundation.html

Sandy Mandelberger, Festival Circuit Editor