Steven Spielberg will serve as president of the award jury at the 66th Cannes Film Festival, which runs from May 15-26. Securing Spielberg has been a goal of Festival president Gilles Jacob for years and finally that aspiration was realized. “When this year I was told ‘E.T., phone home,’ I understood and immediately replied: ‘At last!'” said Jacob in a statement posted on the Festival’s website.
Spielberg–who earned Oscar and DGA Award nominations this year for Lincoln–has had several films screened at Cannes during his career. E.T. had its world premiere there in 1982. And his first film, Sugarland Express, won Best Screenplay honors at Cannes in 1974.
“The memory of my first Cannes Film Festival, nearly 31 years ago with the debut of E.T., is still one of the most vibrant memories of my career,” said Spielberg in a released statement. “For over six decades, Cannes has served as a platform for extraordinary films to be discovered and introduced to the world for the first time. It is an honor and a privilege to preside over the jury of a festival that proves, again and again, that cinema is the language of the world.”
Spielberg further noted, “My admiration for the steadfast mission of the Festival to champion the international language of movies is second to none. The most prestigious of its kind, the festival has always established the motion picture as a cross cultural and generational medium.”
Short stint Meanwhile another distinguished filmmaker, Jane Campion, has been tabbed to preside over the Cin๏ฟฝfondation and Short Film Jury at this year’s Cannes Fest. In 1986, Campion won the short film Palme d’or for Peel. The first feature she presented for competition at Cannes was Sweetie. Campion returned to Cannes in 1993 with The Piano, which won the Palme d’or in addition to the Best Actress honor for Holly Hunter. Campion’s latest film, Bright Star, a fictional biography of the poet Keats and his muse, was presented in competition at Cannes in 2009.
Jacob related, “Jane is a child of Cannes. I know this as it was I who selected her first three short films for the Festival, because I liked her style and consistency. Naively perverse young girls, teens closed in around their solitude, and women mulling over desires and regrets: Jane’s is a passionate universe that she firmly holds in check as she draws these intricate group portraits. I am delighted that the love story between Lady Jane and the Festival continues today as she takes on the role of president.”
“Great” opening Opening the Cannes Fest on May 15 will be The Great Gatsby from director Baz Luhrmann. Adapted from the novel by F. Scott Fitzgerald, the movie centers on the romantic and tragic figure of Jay Gatsby portrayed by Leonardo DiCaprio, as narrated by his friend Nick Carraway played by Tobey Maguire. The Great Gatsby was produced by Warner Bros. Pictures and Village Roadshow Pictures.
The opening film will be screened in 3D, marking the second time that’s been done in the history of the Cannes Festival; the first came in 2009 with Pixar’s Up, directed by Pete Docter.
The Great Gatsby is an out-of-competition presentation. Luhrmann has twice prior been honored at the Cannes Fest–for Strictly Ballroom in 1992 (in the Un Certain Regard section) and for Moulin Rouge! in 2001.
Both the opening and closing ceremonies of the Cannes Fest will be hosted by French actress Audrey Tautou, perhaps best known for the 2001 film Amelie. Her latest film is the Michel Gondry-directed L’Ecume des Jours (Mood Indigo). Tatou’s credits also include starring in Therese Desqueyroux, the film which played at the closing of the Cannes Film Festival last year.
New opportunities Cannes will also host L’Atelier’s 9th edition for which 15 projects from 14 countries have been selected as a means to uncover new talent.
Since its creation in 2005, L’Atelier has been sparking creative filmmaking and encouraging the emergence of a new generation of filmmakers. By inviting directors and their producers to meet hundreds of potential partners during the Cannes Fest, L’Atelier offers its participants access to international co-production, thereby maximizing their chances of completing their projects. So far, out of 126 projects presented over the last eight years, 83 have been completed and 29 are currently in pre-production.
Here’s the 2013 L’Atelier lineup consisting of 15 projects:
• Rey directed by Niles Attalah, Chile
• Ciao Ciao from Song Chuan, China.
• Out/In the Streets by Jasmina Metwaly and Philip Rizk, Egypt.
• Lamb by Yared Zeleke, Ethiopia
• Je ne suis pas un salaud from Emmanuel Finkiel, France.
• Stage Fright by Yorgos Zois, Greece.
• Chenu by Manjeet Singh, India
• Holy Air from Shady Srour, Israel.
• The House on Fin Street by Amir Manor, Israel.
• Sworn Virgin by Laura Bispuri, Italy.
• Me, Myself and Murdoch from Yahya Alabdallah, Jordan/Palestine.
• Days of Cannibalism by Teboho Joscha Edkins, South Africa
• Memories of the Wind by ๏ฟฝzcan Alper, Turkey.
• Road Kill by Yuichi Hibi, U.S.
• The Heirs by Jorge Hern๏ฟฝndez Aldana, Mexico.
From May 17-23, L’Atelier will arrange meetings with the directors for film industry professionals interested in investing in their projects.
