Rachid Bouchareb discussed his controversial In Competitionfilm Hors la loi after its screening Friday morning. The film follows the storyof three brothers in the midst of the Algerian war, prompting much speculation regarding Bouchareb's true message in making this film. The press conference marks thefirst time the cast and director have agreed to speak about their highly anticipated and heavily protested film.Bouchareb refused to speak about Hors la loi before the festival, going so faras to...
Doug Liman presented his In Competition film Fair Game,starring Naomi Watts and Sean Penn, Thursday morning. The press conferencefollowing the screening addressed the true story of scandal, truth and lies of US spies Valerie Plame and Joe Wilson. Fair Game marks the third time Watts and Pennhave worked together, and she expressed her relief when she learned she’dbe playing alongside her longtime friend. “Everytime he’s infront of me, Ielevate my game to match his,” Watts said.Liman empha...
Lee Chang-Dong discussed his film Poetry at a press conference following the In Competition film's screening Wednesday morning. The conference's general theme revolved around the meaning of "poetry," in the film's context as well as in Chang-Dong's personal point of view."Poetry is not just like a bouquet of flowers that is beautiful in itself," Chang-Dong expressed. "It is life. No matter the ugliness of the world, there's always something beautiful inside. That's what ...
Abbas Kiarostami, 1997 Palme d'Or winner, returned to Cannes presenting his In Competition film, Copie Conforme. Tuesday morning's press conference, however, veered toward a heavier subject as Kiarostami called for the release of fellow Iranian filmmaker, Jafar Panahi, who has been imprisoned in a Tehran jail since March 1. Kiarostami hoped to draw attention to the struggle filmmakers face in his native country who are persecuted for having creative ideas, for films that haven't even been compl...
Alejandro Gonzalez Inarritu presented his film Biutiful Monday at the Cannes Film Festival. Reviews are falling on both ends of the spectrum, with critics and viewers feeling very strongly about it in either direction.Viewers exiting the screening yesterday were unanimously positive. Several viewers claimed they were so moved that they were truly incapable of discussing it at the moment. One spectator said, "I can't talk about it. I'm still in the movie." While another claimed, "A...
Japanese director Takeshi Kitano presented his newest film, Outrage, as part of the Cannes Film Festival’s Official Selection Monday morning. The violent film focuses on the Yakuza, that is organized Japanese crime. Kitano said he made a conscious effort to break the boundaries of the stereotypical Yakuza genre, and to portray violence in an innovative, original way. The film, which lacks a predominant hero, has many different characters including Kitano himself. Kitano explained why he enj...
Mahamet-Saleh Haroun and the cast of Un homme qui crie brought a sense of quiet pride and solemnity to the press conference following the In Competition film's screening Sunday morning. Director Haroun discussed the tension and danger involved in the making of his film set in modern-day Chad. Un homme qui crie follows the story of a father and son, while also shedding light on the current tumultuous state of Chad as well as many other countries in Black Africa. Haroun explained that he learned ...
We have been in Cannes for 3 days and we are loving it so far! It's great to be back for the 2nd year in a row as filmmakers and as festival film festival directors. We are looking for great feature and short films from around the world!**We are accepting submissions in the Short Film Corner on Monday/ Lundi the 16th at the Palais in the afternoon. Please email us if you wish to submit in person. The submission is only 10 Euros to submit in person while we are here in Cannes. Our email address...
