Entertainment wRap: Cannes 2013

MANILA, Philippines – The Cannes International Film Festival happens on May 15 to 26. Here are some things you should know about the much-awaited entertainment event.

‘Amelie’ and ‘The Da Vinci Code’ star Audrey Tautou is the mistress of ceremonies

Actress Audrey Tautou, best known for her role as Amelie Poulain from “The Fabulous Destiny of Amelie Poulain,” is this year’s Cannes Film Festival mistress of ceremonies.

Tautou, who was raised in a quiet corner of rural France, has been known to express her uneasiness with the “glitz and glamor” of fame and even shuns Hollywood, claiming she does not see herself as a movie star.

“Celebrity makes me awkward. I am not comfortable with it,” Tautou told Girard in an interview for Le Figaro.

Ironically, the Cannes Festival will test the the young star’s ability to work the spotlight as she introduces the biggest names in the industry such as acclaimed director Steven Spielberg and renowned actress Nicole Kidman.

READ: Spielberg to head Cannes jury

Critics, however, have high hopes for the budding actress, hoping her participation in Cannes will allow her to break out of her shell.

“In accepting the role as maitresse de ceremonie and presenting herself in more ambitious films, we can hope that the second half of Tautou’s career might flourish away from mediocrity: to be more precious, rare and unique,” said the weekly Nouvel Observateur.

Cannes features Bollywood’s golden age

Bollywood star and juror for the Cannes Film Festival Vidya Balan shares she believes Bollywood is at its golden age.

Balan has earned a reputation as a risk-taking heroine in an industry and society where leading roles are traditionally reserved for men. Such roles may be telling of the changing trends in Bollywood.

“We are going through a wonderful time in Indian cinema,” Balan told AFP.

“We are celebrating versatility in every way — content, treatment, presentation, and all of it is unapologetically Indian.”

Balan is one of two Indian actresses who have been invited as a juror. The other is actress and director Nandita Das, who was part of the panel in 1995.

The festival will feature several Bollywood films: “Bombay Talkies,” “Monsoon Shootout,” “Ugly,” and “Chenu.”

Balan sees Cannes as “an opportunity to reach our cinema to a wider world” and showcase its coming of age in the last decade, evidenced by selection at film festivals and growing audiences beyond the diaspora.

Balan believes Indian cinema has the potential to make further inroads with international audiences.

“Indian cinema has a big audience within the diaspora, but our cinema has a unique style and grammar and that, too, differs between the many different Indian language films,” Balan said.

“Our films tend to be longer, they have songs and dances, the dramatic quotient is higher and we follow a different rhythm of storytelling. This is our cinematic heritage and our uniqueness. It’s why our movies are loved by our audiences around the world.

“We should celebrate this, and with the world becoming a smaller place, I am sure more and more people the world over will wake up to the magic of Indian cinema.”

Tribute to Alain Delon

French actor Alain Delon will be honored at the Cannes Film Festival with a screening of “Plein Soleil” (Purple Noon), a 1960 adaptation of “The Talented Mr Ripley,” a play he starred in.

The film, considered a milestone in Delon’s career, led to the acclaimed “Rocco et ses Freres” (Rocco and his Brothers). It will be showcased in the Cannes Classics series.

Delon made some 100 films throughout his career and is regarded as a versatile and talented actor.

The Cannes Film Festival in figures

Here is a statistical snapshot of the May 15-26 Cannes Film Festival:

• 80: The number of feature-length films, comprising 52 in the festival’s official selection (of which 20 are in the competition for the Palme d’Or); 18 in the category of Directors’ Fortnight; and 10 in the Critics’ Week.
• 60: The length in metres (yards) of Cannes’ fabled red carpet, which ascends 24 steps at the Palais des Festivals. The red carpet gets used three times a day, ahead of films that are shown in competition or for out-of-competition screening.
• 4,000: The number of movies that will be hawked at the International Film Market. The market is a major part of the festival, bringing together more than 10,000 buyers and sellers in the world film industry.
• 73,324: That’s Cannes’ year-round population, which soars to more than 200,000 during the festival. Visitors will notch up a total of 85,000 nights in hotels. The 12-day event accounts for 15 percent of the local hotel industry’s annual turnover.
• 20,000: The number of petunias that have been brought in to provide floral decoration for the festival.
• 4,800: The tally of accredited journalists, including 300 TV crews, making Cannes one of the biggest scheduled media events in the world.

Cannes 2013 films

Palme d’Or

The Palme d’Or (Golden Palm), the highest prize awarded in Cannes, will feature 20 films that will compete before the jury headed by US director Steven Spielberg.

Here are the films vying for the top prize:

• “Un Chateau en Italie”, Valeria Bruni-Tedeschi
• “Inside Llewyn Davis”, Ethan Coen, Joel Coen
• “Michael Kohlhaas”, Arnaud Despallieres
• “Jimmy P. (Psychotherapy of a Plains Indian)”, Arnaud Desplechin
• “Heli”, Amat Escalante
• “Le Passe”, Asghar Farhadi
• “The Immigrant”, James Gray
• “Grigris”, Mahamat-Saleh Haroun
• “Tian Zhu Ding” (“A Touch of Sin”), Jia Zhangke
• “Soshite Chichi Ni Naru” (“Like Father, Like Son”), Hirokazu Kore-Eda
• “La Vie d’Adele”, Abdellatif Kechiche
• “Wara No Tate” (“Shield of Straw”), Takashi Miike
• “Jeune et Jolie”, Francois Ozon
• “Nebraska”, Alexander Payne
• “La Venus a la Forrure”, Roman Polanski
• “Behind the Candelabra”, Steven Soderbergh
• “La Grande Bellezza” (“The Great Beauty”), Paolo Sorrentino
• “Borgman”, Alex van Warmerdam
• “Only God Forgives”, Nicolas Winding Refn
• “Only Lovers Left Alive”, Jim Jarmusch
• Critics’ Week

Here is a list of the feature films selected for the May 16-24 Critics’ Week running alongside the main Cannes Film Festival.

Opening film

• “Suzanne”, Katell Quillevere (France)

In competition

• “For Those in Peril”, Paul Wright (Britain)
• “Le Demantelement”, Sebastien Pilote (Canada)
• “Los Duenos”, Agustin Toscano, Ezequiel Radusky (Argentina)
• “Nos heros sont morts ce soir”, David Perrault (France)
• “The Lunchbox” Ritesh Batra (India/France/Germany)
• “The Major”, Yuri Bykov (Russia)
• “Salvo”, Fabio Grassadonia, Antonio Piazza (Italy, France)

Special screenings

• “Les Rencontres d’apres minuit”, Yann Gonzalez (France)
• “Ain’t Them Bodies Saints”, David Lowery (US)
• Filipino Films

Filipino independent films have made it to the festival. 3 full length films and 3 short films bear the Filipino flag in this year’s roster of masterpieces.

Full length films

• “On the Job” by Erik Matti
• “Norte, Hangganan ng Kasaysayan” by Lav Diaz
• “Death March” by Adolfo Alix Jr.

Short Films

• “Katapusang Labok” by Aiess Alonso
• “Mga Engkantong Laog sa Mahabang Dapithapon” by Roderick Cabrido
• “Oasis Redux” by Carlo Manatad

Watch the trailer for ‘On The Job’ here: