CANNES FILM FESTIVAL 08 NEWS...STAY TUNED FOR THE WINNERS
Cannes is regarded as one of the most influential and prestigious film festivals, along with Venice and Berlin. This year's event will be held May 14-25 in the French Riviera resort town of Cannes, France.
Clint's 'Changeling' set for Cannes
Angelina Jolie stars in Eastwood film
Clint Eastwood's "Changeling," a 1920s-set mystery thriller starring Angelina Jolie, will be part of the competition lineup at the upcoming Cannes Film Festival.The full slate of Cannes Official Selection entries is being announced today in Paris.
"Changeling," which Universal will release domestically in November, also stars John Malkovich, Amy Ryan and Colm Feore. Pic will be Eastwood's fifth to compete in Cannes, after "Pale Rider," "White Hunter, Black Heart," "Bird" and "Mystic River."
In a reversal of how the situation looked late last week, Woody Allen's "Vicky Cristina Barcelona," which stars Penelope Cruz, Scarlett Johansson and Javier Bardem, will appear in Cannes after all, with Allen attending the fest over the initial weekend.
In another switch, it seems that Barry Levinson's "What Just Happened?" may not close the fest, leaving question marks over both the opening and closing slots, which have been unusually difficult to fill this year (Daily Variety, April 18).
Speculation continues to surround Steven Soderbergh's dual Che Guevara features, "The Argentine" and "Guerrilla." Despite the desires of both Soderbergh and Cannes topper Thierry Fremaux to premiere the films on the Croisette, it looked all but certain last week that the biographical dramas simply wouldn't be ready in time. No one is saying the situation has definitely changed, but the competition schedule is being left flexible enough to accommodate Soderbergh in case he decides the films are in shape to present to the public -- a result for which Cannes programmers have evidently been given some reason to hope.
It would hardly be the first time a not-entirely-finished film unspools in Competition; indeed, "Apocalypse Now" and "Paris, Texas" were both further reshaped by their directors after winning the Palme d'Or.
Among other last-minute additions to the competition are the new pictures by Chinese helmer Jia Zhangke and Singapore's Eric Khoo. South Korean auteur Kim Jee-woon's "The Good, the Bad, the Weird" will be shown in the Official Selection in a special screening.
The Festival de Cannes is the
most important film event in the world, with more than 4,000 journalists
among the 30,000 accreditees, representing the entire spectrum of the
motion-picture industry.
The Festival de Cannes reflects the dual nature of cinema at the
crossroads of art and industry, and favours both cinema revelations and
professional encounters. For if the Festival principally evokes the
surprise of the Selection and the expectation of the final awards, it
is equally the privileged rendezvous of all motion-picture industry
professionals who attend its Marché du Film.
The Festival, moreover, develops actions in support of cinematic
creation throughout the world. Twenty years after having created the
Caméra d'Or, the prize awarded to the best first film, all selections
combined, the Festival created in 1998 the Cinéfondation to accompany
young filmmakers along the various stages of their creative careers,
from their projects to the making of their films.
The role of the Festival de Cannes has thus grown rich over the course
of the years to the rhythm of the evolution of cinema itself: selecting
and promoting films and artists, welcoming professionals, implementing
new sets of dynamics in support of creation... in a word, serving the
cinema in all its dimensions.
