The 2008 Cannes film festival, known as the Festival de Cannes gets under way from the 14th to 25th May and on the jury this year will be Sean Penn. Reputedly the worlds most important cinematic movie event it is frequented by over 35,000 of the industries movers and shakers along with around 4,000 of the worlds press.
Accommodation, in particular in the main seafront hotels books as much as a year ahead so many attendees of the festival seek to rent a villa in Cannes or in the surrounding villages and properties such as Millandell in La Trayes are often used for the event.
Even if you are not participating, Festival time is a unique moment to visit Cannes and enjoy the south of France in all its pomp. There are so many celebrities in town you can hardly fail to bump into one. The best way to go about it is to stay out of town in Grasse or Mougin and drive or take the train into Cannes for the day. Often there are outdoor films on show for the general public and the general buzz of the town, awash with “supercars” and “beautiful people” is very enjoyable.
A French government initiative, the Cannes film festival was eventually launched in the old Casino in 1946 after an earlier abortive pre-war attempt. The main aim of the festival was to showcase films without bending to commercial pressures. In 1983 the Palais des Festivals, an altogether bigger venue was built to host the event on the Cannes seafront.
It is generally recognised that the Festivale de Cannes has become a crucial showcase for European films based on artistic quality. A non public event the festival is attended by many movie stars and film producers use it to promote their wares to potential distributors who come from around the globe. Here is a list of the main film catogories This centuries winners of the most prestigious of the awards, the Palme d’Or, were:
The film U2 3D directed by Catherine Ownes and Mark Pellington, which was shown at an out of competition screening at the Cannes film festival last year was released in France on Wednesday 5th March. A revealing film of the band covering their 2006 Vertigo tour concerts, with the latest 3D technology, it’s projected to be a big hit with fans of Bono and company as well as music lovers worldwide.
Villas Worldwide has over 50 high quality Cote d’azur villas including 2 in Cannes, most with private swimming pools. www.world-villa.co.uk
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