Official Selection for the 2024 Cannes Film Festival Unveiled

The 2024 Cannes Film Festival Official Selection has been unveiled, showcasing a diverse blend of emerging global talents and renowned Hollywood figures.

 

Scheduled from Tuesday, May 14th to Saturday, May 25th, the 77th installment of the legendary Cannes Film Festival promises to uphold its reputation as one of the premier and most eagerly awaited events of the year.

 

The 2024 rendition will be notable for appointing the inaugural American female President of the Jury. Greta Gerwig, the 40-year-old director of "Barbie," will also be one of the youngest presidents in the esteemed event's history. It's been nearly six decades since someone as youthful as 31-year-old Sophia Loren assumed this prestigious position back in 1966.

Mega-director George Lucas, aged 79, famed for creating the Star Wars and Indiana Jones franchises, has been named as the recipient of an honorary Palme d’Or. The prestigious award will be bestowed upon him during the Festival's closing ceremonies on Saturday, May 25th.

This year's event will welcome back familiar faces, including actor-director Kevin Costner, presenting his latest cinematic endeavor, a western titled "Horizon: An American Saga." The ensemble cast features Costner alongside talents such as Sienna Miller, Abby Lee, and Jamie Campbell.

"I couldn't imagine a more fitting venue than the Cannes Film Festival to unveil the culmination of such a magnificent journey," Costner remarks.

 

The iconic Mad Max series will make its mark at Cannes, as George Miller unveils his latest film, "Furiosa: A Mad Max Saga," featuring a star-studded cast including Chris Hemsworth, Tom Burke, and Anya Taylor-Joy.

The opening film of the Festival comes from the imaginative mind of French filmmaker and DJ Quentin Dupieux: "The Second Act." While not included in the list of competition entries, it's poised to become one of the year's standout French-language comedy successes. Starring Léa Seydoux and Vincent Lindon, it promises to captivate audiences with its unique charm.

Drawing considerable anticipation with its world premiere is Ali Abbasi’s "The Apprentice," a fictionalized biopic shedding light on Donald Trump’s real estate endeavors during the 1970s and 1980s. Sebastian Stan steps into the shoes of the man himself, while Jeremy Strong portrays Trump’s infamous lawyer and fixer, Roy Cohn. The film is a notable inclusion in the official In Competition selection.

Among the array of titles vying for recognition in the competition are Magnus von Horn’s "The Girl with the Needle"; Karim Aïnouz’s "Motel Destino"; Jia Zhang-Ke’s "Caught by the Tides"; "Bird" by Andrea Arnold; "Emilia Perez" by Jacques Audiard; Sean Baker’s "Anora"; Francis Ford Coppola’s "Megalopolis"; "The Shrouds" by David Cronenberg; "The Substance" by Coralie Fargeat; Miguel Gomes’ "Grand Tour"; Christophe Honoré's "Marcello Mio"; "All We Imagine as Light" by Payal Kapadia; Yórgos Lánthimos’s "Kinds of Kindness"; "L’Amour Ouf" by Gilles Lellouche; Agathe Riedinger’s "Wild Diamond"; Paul Schrader’s "Oh Canada"; Kirill Serebrennikov’s "Limonov – The Ballad"; and "Parthenope" from Paolo Sorrentino.

The Un Certain Regard category has narrowed down its selection to 15 films, with six of them marking the directors' debut feature-length productions. These include Julien Colonna’s "Le Royaume"; Louise Courvoisier’s "Vingt Deux !"; Laetitia Dosch’s "Dog on Trial"; "The Village Next to Paradise" by Mo Harawe; Ariane Labed’s "September Says"; and "Armand" by Halfdan Ullmann Tøndel.

For more details about the films both in and out of competition, click here.

Rencontres In&Out - Festival du Film Queer 2024

It's once again that time of the year for the 16th edition of the Festival du Film Queer de Nice, scheduled to run from April 18th to the 29th.

 

Since 2009, the In&Out Film Festival has been a staple in Nice, expanding to Cannes in 2012 and Toulon in 2020.

At the heart of the Nice association, two main lines of force in permanent interaction at the heart of its activist commitments: the prevention of sexist and LGBTphobic violence, and the defense of queer cultures on the other.

The association intervenes in schools, offers training for adults and organizes film festivals.

Les Ouvreurs operates with the idea of ​​collective work and are members of several associative networks from different backgrounds: the Collective for the fight against AIDS of the Alpes-Maritimes; COREVIH PACA-Est, and the LGBT PACA Coordination.

They have also participated in the creation of the Collectif Fierté Toulon, which has organized the Toulon Pride March since 2020 and are at the origin of the creation of the Educational Network against LGBTphobia of the Nice Academy alongside CRIPS SUD.

The mission of the association is in accordance with their statutes, the aim of Les Ouvreurs is:

• to implement the different editions of the In&Out Cinematographic Meetings, Queer Film Festivals in Nice, Cannes and Toulon, which present well-known or rarer films exploring themes linked to sexualities,

• to lead School Interventions (IMS) in Nice academy establishments, around issues of gender and sexual orientation, which are still little or poorly addressed,

• to offer training for adults around the themes of “Sexualities and discrimination”, in order to better understand and know how to act in all circumstances,

• to organize and participate in cultural events relating to the dissemination of Queer culture, the fight against AIDS/STIs or raising awareness of discrimination linked to sexualities

• to promote, cultivate and enhance LGBT experience and contribute to history, particularly for those from the Riviera.

What is on offer during the Rencontres In&Out - Festival du Film Queer?

★ 10 days of festivities (screenings, exhibitions, live shows, readings & evenings, etc.)

★ around 40 films screened each year (feature films, documentaries and short films).

★ a community of +4,000 movie fans that continues to grow every year.

For more information and tickets contact Les Ouvreurs.

The Olympic Torch is coming to the Cote d’Azur

The Olympic Flame is scheduled to reach France in early May after a voyage by boat from Greece. Marseille will mark the inaugural stop on the journey, with numerous towns and cities along the French Riviera also extending a warm welcome to the torch as it progresses north toward Paris.

Beyond the Games, the eternal flame remains safeguarded in Olympia, situated near the Temple of Hera. Following its arrival in the southern city of Marseille on May 8th, the Olympic flame will proceed towards the island of Corsica for a short sojourn before returning to the mainland and embarking on a route through the western regions of France.

On June 7th, the flame will embark on another maritime journey, this time bound for France's overseas territories, which include La Réunion, Guadeloupe, and Martinique.

After concluding its visits to other locations, Nice will take its turn to welcome the flame along the Promenade des Anglais and Quai des Etats Unis before the torch commences its month-long trek to the French capital.

In an interview with the French press, Mayor Christian Estrosi of Nice stated, "The presence of the Olympic flame in Nice on June 18th will hold profound significance. Serving as the inaugural stop in the final leg toward Paris, Nice marks the conclusion of the Ocean Relay before assuming the role of global capital during the United Nations Ocean Summit in June 2025."

The flame will also be welcomed by six other municipalities in the region: Villefranche-sur-Mer, Grasse, Cannes, Valberg, Antibes Juan les Pins, and Valdeblore-La Colmiane.

Dates for the arrival of the Olympic Flame to the other local locations will be announced shortly.

The Prince’s Palace of Monaco Welcomes The Public

The Grand Apartments of the Prince's Palace have reopened to the public for the bustling tourist season. Visitors can now explore the lavish lifestyle of the Grimaldi family over the centuries and learn about the remarkable restoration of the Palace frescoes.

 

The Grand Apartments of Monaco's Palace stand as a testament to the opulence and refinement of the Principality's rulers over the centuries. Adorned with intricate details and magnificent halls, each room narrates Monaco's rich heritage and regal legacy.

In contrast to numerous royal residences globally, often closed or open only on rare occasions, the Palace of Monaco warmly welcomes visitors daily until October 13th, granting them firsthand access to its majestic interiors.

Guests can admire the magnificent decor and fine furnishings that have adorned these halls for generations. Enhanced with ornate chandeliers, gilded mirrors, and priceless artworks, these rooms emanate an aura of grandeur and refinement.

Additionally, visitors will have the opportunity to witness the remarkable Italian Renaissance frescoes spanning over 600 sqm of the Palace.

Concealed for nearly five centuries, the frescoes were unexpectedly revealed during restoration efforts in 2015.

With the support of Prince Albert II, the monumental endeavor to restore the 16th-century frescoes found in the Galerie d'Hercule and the Grand Apartments has elevated the Palace of Monaco to prominence in the annals of world art history.

This achievement is not only due to the importance of the discoveries but also to the pioneering and innovative approach to sustainable restoration. This methodology prioritizes the preservation of artworks while conserving resources.

Admission fees to visit the Grand Apartments are €10 per adult, and €5 per child.