Cannes or Bust » festival

Electronic music on the beach in Cannes this summer

admin — Tue, 06 Jul 2010 08:35:35 +0000

On July 13, the beach at Cannes will become a massive dancefloor for the fifth time. Between now and August 17, five nights of electronic music will bring together a happy crowd for what is France’s only beach festival. Les Plages Electroniques is a fun event, attracting a young crowd from across the south of France. Headliners this year include Derrick May, Norman Jay, Crookers, DJ Marky and MC Stamina and many others.

With Riviera weather, one of the world’ most glamourous beaches, the opportunity to splash around listening to some great electronic music, Les Plages Electroniques is a must-see this summer. The shows tend to sell out, so our tip is to book a ticket early (see the site below).

International Fashion Photography festival

admin — Sat, 19 Jun 2010 10:30:34 +0000

For the 8th year, Cannes is celebrating the best in fashion photography with an exhibition in a number of venues around town. This year, the International Festival of Fashion Photography invited the noted fashion photographer Jacques Olivar.

The Palm Beach Casino, main partner of this event, hosts on its cymas the 2010 selection of contemporary photography creation. Ninety fashion photographers from different backgrounds present their creations on 1 m x 1.50 m printings. On the terrace of the Palm Beach Casino, a selection of 32 photographs among Jacques Olivar’s work shows the great strength of his pictures, printed on 3 m x 3 m sheets and put on spotlighted structures, so that the exhibition can be seen day and night.

Invited by the festival, German photographer Irish Brosch said, “I’m fond of this nice festival. Because it’s not huge, it’s a very warm and agreeable event where people coming from all over the world can meet among wonderful photographs. The festival key word is pleasure, only pleasure really.”

Town of Cannes: along the Croisette, the palm grove of the Canto port Rue d’Antibes, Palm Beach Casino,
Hôtel 3.14, Hôtel Martinez
June 15-August 25,
Entry fee: Free of charge

Open-air screening programme at Cannes 2010

admin — Thu, 06 May 2010 06:10:50 +0000

The aptly-named Cinéma de la Plage is a great way to catch movies in Cannes. The public beach beside the Palais is used to show a selection of classics or Cannes-related movies. The news in 2010 is that they will also be showing some premiers (of restored films). In previous years, tickets had to obtained from the tourist office. This year the event is billed as “free and open to the public”. Some films will be introduced (Mme Cousteau will be present at the screening of The Silent World) and at least one concert is foreseen. Films start at 9.30pm. Our tip is to get their on time and to bring a blanket in case it gets chilly.

PROGRAMME

Thursday May 13^th at 9:30pm

FROM HERE TO ETERNITY by Fred Zinnemann (1953, USA, 119’).
Digital restoration by Grover Crisp, Sony Pictures Film Preservation

Friday May 14^th at 9:30pm

THE 2 ESCOBARS
A documentary by Jeff Zimbalist et Michael Zimbalist (2010, USA, 90’). World premier with the directors in attendance.

Saturday May 15^th at 9:30pm

THE NIGHT OF VARENNES by Ettore Scola (1982, Italy-France 150’). World premier of the restauration produced by Gaumont.

Sunday May 16^th at 9:30pm

HOLLYWOOD DON’T SURF a documentary by Greg MacGillivray et Sam George (2010, USA, 81’). World premiere with the directors in attendance.

Monday May 17^th at 9:30pm

LA MEUTE a film by Franck Richard (2010, Belgium-France, 85’) with Emilie Dequenne, Yolande Moreau, Benjamin Biolay, Philippe Nahon.

Tuesday May 18^th at 9:30pm

Screening to be announced

Wednesday May 19^th at 9:30pm

WOMEN ARE HEROES a documentary by JR (2010, 80’, France). Screening in collaboration with the Critic’s Week.

Thursday May 20^th at 9:30pm

THE GIRL HUNTERS by Roy Rowland (1963, USA, 98’). New print, World premier.

Friday May 21^st at 9 :30pm

ROCK ‘N ROLL… OF CORSE ! a documentary by Lionel Guedj et Stéphane Bébert (2010, France, 90’) – A World premier with the directors and Henry Padovani in attendance. There will be a concert on the stage before the screening.

Saturday 22^nd May at 9:30pm

LE MONDE DU SILENCE (The Silent World) a film by Jacques-Yves Cousteau and Louis Malle (1956, France, 86’). A digital restoration by TF1 Video, Europe Images International. Mrs. Cousteau will attend the screening.

Storms devastate beaches in Cannes and Nice

admin — Wed, 05 May 2010 07:13:42 +0000

Cannes before the storm, by Jacques Gumbau, 2010

Although the photo is quite pretty, the damage is very real. Jacques Gumbau’s photo was taken yesterday afternoon just before a major storm devastated beaches across Nice and Cannes, leaving some plans for the Cannes Film Festival in tatters. Each year, the festival welcomes a side industry that lives off parties, fashion shows and receptions, many of which are concentrated on the beach restaurants and clubs. Waves of between 8 and 10 metres hit the beaches causing substantial damage and swamping the Croisette. The open-air TV studio of CANAL+ is also located prominently on the beach. Worse damage was noted in Nice, however, where the beach was almost wiped clean of every man-made structure overnight.

Click through for images of the storm in Cannes, where a restaurant was smashed as people were eating in it, and Promenade des Anglais in Nice.

The mayors of both Cannes and Nice have requested that the storm be recognised as a natural catastrophe. However, it follows other storms earlier in the year and a debate about whether beach restaurants are not actually putting themselves in danger. The number of storms has increased over the years.

Sony World Photography Award winners announced in Cannes

admin — Fri, 23 Apr 2010 06:46:43 +0000

Arts & Entertainment winner Paolo Pellegrin, Italy © Paolo Pellegrin courtesy of Sony World Photography Awards 2010 / Magnum Photos for New York Times Magazine

The L’Iris d’Or and professional category winners of the 2010 Sony World Photography Awards were announced on Thursday 22 April, at the Sony World Photography Awards Ceremony at the Palais des Festivals in Cannes, France. The 12 professional winners spanned categories as diverse as fashion, architecture, current affairs and sport and were revealed alongside the Sony World Photography Awards Amateur Photographer of the Year as part of the World Photography Festival.

The prestigious L’Iris d’Or/Sony World Photography Awards Photographer of the Year award was awarded to Tommaso Ausili in the Professional category. Vitali Seitz was announced as the 2010 Sony World Amateur Photographer of the Year.

The professional category winners are:

Photojournalism and Documentary

* Walter Astrada (Argentina) for Current Affairs
* Scott Barbour (New Zealand) for Sport
* Tommaso Ausili (Italy) for Contemporary Issues
* Paolo Pellegrin (Italy) for Arts and Entertainment

Fashion winner David Handley, UK © David Handley courtesy of Sony World Photography Awards 2010 / Jackie Gibbs

Commercial

* Martin Brent (United Kingdom) for Advertising
* David Handley (United Kingdom) for Fashion
* Mohammad Golchin (Iran) for Music

Fine Art

* Philipp Lohöefener (Germany)for Architecture
* Tommaso Bonaventura (Italy) for Portraiture
* Renhui Zhao (Singapore) for Conceptual and Constructed
* Pere Pascual (Spain) for Natural History
* Peter Franck (Germany) for Landscape

The prestigious L’Iris d’Or/Sony World Photography Awards Photographer of the Year award was awarded to Tommaso Ausili. The Italian photographer’s evocative series of photographs in the Cotemporary Issues category, entitled “The Hidden Death”, is an insightful depiction of an assembly line at an abattoir. Ausili was awarded a $25,000 cash prize plus Sony digital SLR camera equipment and he joins previous L’Iris d’Or winners David Zimmerman and Vanessa Winship as a member of the World Photographic Academy.
Tommaso Ausili said at the ceremony: “I’m very glad to receive this award. Since I started this series on the death of animals, I have felt an enormous sense of guilt, and this prize goes some way to repay that debt. Thanks to the Sony World Photography Awards for honouring my work with this prize.”

Photographer Vitali Seitz was announced as the 2010 Sony World Amateur Photographer of the Year at the ceremony. Based in Munich, but originally from Siberia, Vitali’s image entitled “Hauskonzert: Home concert” was taken at an informal concert as part of a family birthday and also won the amateur Music category. In addition to his title Vitali picked up a $5,000 cash prize and Sony digital SLR camera equipment.

All the winning and shortlisted images of the 2010 awards are on display until 27 April as part of the World Photography Festival in Cannes. The images will then be showcased in the Sony World Photography Awards Global Tour exhibition which will tour around the world throughout 2010 and 2011.

The final presentation of the evening went to celebrated American photojournalist Eve Arnold. Presented the day after her 98th birthday, the Lifetime Achievement Award was collected by her grandson Michael Arnold. Eve’s 50 year career has captured some of history’s most memorable figures from Malcolm X to Marilyn Monroe and was the first female photographer to be taken on by Magnum. A retrospective of Eve’s work, curated by Zelda Cheatle, is currently on display at the Palais des Festival.

Astrid Merget, Creative Director of the World Photography Organisation, said: “The quality of work submitted by this year’s professional photographers was remarkable. Narrowing down so many impressive selections to just 36 finalists was a feat worthy of a very distinguished jury like ours to undertake. We are all thrilled with the results and honoured to have such talented photographers participate in our awards programme.”

Yoshiyuki Nogami, Vice President of Digital Imaging at Sony Europe, said: “We are once again honoured to support this unique competition which celebrates the power of photography. This year’s contest has produced an inspired showcase of phenomenal photographic talent and we congratulate all these deserving winners.”

All the winning professional and amateur images can be viewed at worldphotographyawards.org

Pan-African Film Festival opens in Cannes

admin — Thu, 22 Apr 2010 13:34:43 +0000

Until April 25, Cannes is home to the annual Pan-African Film Festival. Each year it celebrates movies from Africa and the diaspora. In 2010, this includes films from South Africa, Morocco, Jamaica, Nigeria and Mozambique. The festival also celebrates fashion and features music performances most nights. Films are screened at the Cinema Star and Espace Miramar. A Creole night will be held on Saturday. For news and details.

Submit your film to Cannes in a Van

admin — Thu, 15 Apr 2010 08:07:13 +0000

I remember trying to sell a corporate sponsor the idea of organising projections of short films in a large car or small van during the festival. It didn’t happen. But luckily someone else had the bottle to get up and do it without the corporate shilling. Cannes in a Van is billed as the world’s smallest mobile film festival. They screen independent film at the Cannes Film Festival straight from the back of a yellow van parked on the Croisette. Shorts, features, festival reels and music videos; nothing is off-limits according to the site. Submissions are free and this year they are introducing the Van d’Or awards.

It’s a fun idea and worth supporting (and by the way, they also accept corporate shillings as sponsorship – see the site). Details and the submission form can be found here. Photo courtesy of Flickr.

150,000 visitors expected for Games Festival

admin — Thu, 18 Feb 2010 22:16:09 +0000

A stunning 150,000 visitors are expected at Cannes’ Festival des Jeux, March 3-7, 2010. The event will feature tournaments, with a special chess event, encounters with games in development, video games, mangas, special all-night sessions and much more.

The event will also provide a platform for the annual French games awards, l’As d’Or (Golden Ace) with 11 games in the running, which can be played on the spot. For details, visit Festival des jeux.

Cannes Independent Film Festival open for submissions

admin — Tue, 16 Feb 2010 07:48:43 +0000

The Cannes Independent Film Festival (which is not officially affiliated with the Cannes festival itself) presents selections during the Marché du Film, the international film marketplace where films are bought and sold in Cannes. Several films from CIFF 2009 were sold in the Marché du Film and went on to international release, including I AM FROM TITOV VELES and COWBOYS AND ANGELS.

Selected filmmakers are presented with an opportunity to screen at the Palais des Festivals, sell in the Marché du Film, attend CIFF marketing and sales courses, have their film listed in CIFF’s Official Market Guide, network with attending industry executives, and attend launch and promotion parties at the CIFF villa. The Festival offers awards in eleven categories with sponsored prizes totaling over $100,000 in value. CIFF also offers a number of travel and accommodation allowances to participating filmmakers, covering airfare, accreditation, and lodging in the villa.

Submissions are open. For details, visit CIFF.

World Photography Festival, April 2010

admin — Mon, 08 Feb 2010 21:53:23 +0000

Cannes and the south of France are eminently photogenic. So it’s only apt perhaps that the Sony World Photography festival will take place in the Palais des Festivals, Cannes between April 22-27. The line-up looks tasty, with photographer programmes from the likes of iStockphoto (tips on shooting for stock photos), a talk from Idris Khan and Adrian Boot delving into the challenging craft of portraiture photography and asking the question: Can a photograph ever tell a truth about the subject? There are also portfolio reviews, exhibitions and a bunch of people talking shop – never a bad thing. Don’t forget the obligatory glitz of the awards ceremony.

I’m just not too sure how much all this costs. They have an à la carte pricing policy that looks great value to me even when I add bits up. For details, visit the World Photography Festival.

Here’s a tip from us: The good news is that this falls in an off-season time for the hotels. So you can find great deals on our Cannes hotel deals site.