It is Tuesday evening here in the City of Cannes, the weather is cool and calm and there is last minutes crosschecking, flowers are being moved in carpets being laid and equipment test running. All this is to ensure that nothing goes wrong when the biggest film festival in the world opens tomorrow.
On the occasion of its 60th edition, there is no doubt that the festival has come of age. All efforts are therefore been proactively put in place to ensure a grand outing. The Press Centre is refurbished with a more comfortable and covered terrace. All its accessories and accompanying conveniences are in place: internet, email, printing and photocopying facilities.
The energetic Head of the Press Office, Christine Aimé was seen in a last minute meeting with her staff to ensure that about 4, 000 journalists from all over the world that would be covering the festival are well supported in their coverage. Aime's Assistant, Sandra Couet assures that all efforts have been geared to make things easy for the media. The Press Area has over 100 computers connected to high speed internet provided by NEC and it opens from 9.00 a.m. in the morning till 11.00 p.m. in the evening. Water, coffee and chocolate are served free of charge.
About 40, 000 people including professionals, marketers, filmmakers, tourists, and so on are expected at the festival, while over 3000 participants are expected at the Film Market. The Film Market is the largest event of its type in the world. Not only does it reflect the current state of worldwide film production and distribution but it's also the place where the movie industry comes together each year to do business and establish important relationships.
Tomorrow, when the festival opens, there will be a moment of reflection on the opportunities and challenges of the next decade. A special conference focused on the evolution of audience practices and on the ties between cinema creation, new promotional and broadcast platforms would be staged at Salle Bunuel from 2.30 p.m. to 5.30 p.m.
Film industry representatives, new media players, journalists and sociologists will share their experiences and views on how the fast evolving digital economy is shaping new roles for directors, producers and distributors while offering exciting opportunities to creators and audiences. Colin Brown, Editor-in-Chief, Screen International will moderate the discussion between the following guest speakers: Danah Boyd, Bernard Collard, Emmanuel Ethis and Michael Gubbins among others.
The Opening film, My Blueberry Nights, by Wong Kar Wai will be screened at Grand Theatre Lumiere at 7.30 p.m.
Tunde Oladunjoye
reporting from Cannes, France
