The director of Cannes Film Festival , Thierry Fremaux, lamented the intensification of focus, in recent years, on political and social issues in the film industry, which, according to him, came at the expense of the films themselves. The speech was made this Monday (13).
“In the past, people only talked about cinema,” Fremaux said during a press conference in Cannes. “We as organizers only had one concern – the films: will people like them, will people hate them?”
Fremaux made the comment in response to a question about the French newspaper's report Le Figaro, published last week, which said that Cannes had hired a crisis management team to deal with the possible fallout following the release of an alleged list of 10 film industry figures accused of sexual abuse. To date, this list has not been published.
“It’s not about controversies that actually arise from the festival, that’s something we want to avoid,” said Fremaux.
He guaranteed, however, that he found it important to show the new short film at the festival “Moi Aussi ” (“Me too”) by Judith Godreche, a French actress who has been an important voice in the #MeToo movement in the country. The global movement has exposed men accused of sexual harassment in entertainment, politics and business.
Last week, the festival announced that the 17-minute short film featuring the testimony of around 1,000 victims of sexual abuse would be shown at the opening ceremony of the “Un Certain Regard” competition. on Wednesday night (14).
Fremaux emphasized several times that the films were chosen for their cinematic qualities – whether about Ukraine , Gaza or former President of the United States, Donald Trump . From the beginning, “Cannes reflected the turmoil of the world because that's what directors do in their films,” he said.
Fremaux is also dealing with a possible strike by festival workers that threatens to close everything in Cannes, scheduled to take place from May 14th to 25th. Fremaux said Cannes discusses the issues with worker representatives daily.
Source: CNN Brasil
I’m Robert Neff, a professional writer and editor. I specialize in the entertainment section, providing up-to-date coverage on the latest developments in film, television and music. My work has been featured on World Stock Market and other prominent publications.
