2022 Cannes Film Festival To Include Record Number Of Films Directed By Women

Elsa Keslassy International CorrespondentPresiding over the 75th edition of the Cannes Film Festival, director Thierry Frémaux has assembled some serious Hollywood star power, world cinema auteurs amid indications that despite COVID, the film world is buzzing with anticipation for the films, the deals and most of all the glamour the fest brings.While Frémaux has been credited with expanding the horizons of the Cannes Film Festival since taking over the reins of its Official Selection in 2001, he’s also been praised for building relationships with American studios and filmmakers.This year, he’s lured them back in spite of the ongoing pandemic, with a lineup including James Gray’s “Armageddon Time,” David Cronenberg’s “Crimes of the Future,” Joseph Kosinski’s “Top Gun: Maverick,” Kelly Reichardt’s “Showing Up,” George Miller’s “Three Thousand Years of Longing” and Baz Luhrmann’s “Elvis.” “My first red carpet was for ‘Moulin Rouge!’ with Baz Luhrmann and Nicole Kidman in 2001 and it will be engraved in my memory forever,” says Fremaux. “I’m happy to reunite with Baz this year.

Cannes Film Festival almost 35 years ago, I was still green and naïve enough to ask long-time Cannes attendees why the famed French fest held such a powerful place in the pecking order of international film gatherings. The late Richard Corliss, Time magazine’s peerless and beloved film critic, answered warmly and succinctly, with his own more worldly query: “Would you rather be in Germany in the winter or the South of France in the spring?”Corliss had a point, but in the decades since I’ve tucked my own couple of dozen Cannes fests under my belt, I’ve compiled my own list of reasons why Cannes remains the one film festival that people who’ve never been to a film festival have heard about and wish they could go to, and know that if a film has scored there, it must be worth their time.

Mubi has acquired North American and U.K. rights for director Léa Mysius’ drama “The Five Devils” ahead of its premiere in the Directors Fortnight section of this month’s Cannes Film Festival.The film follows newcomer Sally Dramé as a strange and solitary girl named Vicky with the magical gift of being able to reproduce and bottle any scent she finds — including that of her mother, played by Adèle Exarchopoulos (“Blue Is the Warmest Color”).

Leo Barraclough International Features EditorCondor has picked up French rights to Saim Sadiq’s drama “Joyland” ahead of its world premiere in Cannes’ Un Certain Regard. The title, the first Pakistani film to be selected in Cannes, will vie for the Caméra d’Or.Film Constellation is representing international sales rights.

Actress Michelle Williams and filmmaker Kelly Reichardt (“Wendy & Lucy“) have reunited for the drama “Showing Up,” a low-budget pic that sees Williams play a tightly wound artist named Lizzie. The film will be heading to the Canes Film Festival where it is notably one of the few movies playing there that has been helmed by a female director.

Brent Lang Executive Editor of Film and MediaMichelle Williams is expecting her third child. The Oscar-nominated actress, 41, and her husband Thomas Kail, 44, will welcome the baby this fall, Variety has learned.“It’s totally joyous,” Williams tells Variety. “As the years go on, you sort of wonder what they might hold for you or not hold for you.

Michelle Williams doesn’t quite know how to describe it.There’s just this thing that comes over her when she’s on a movie set, granting her a transportive ability to shape-shift and access untapped reservoirs of emotion somewhere between the time a director yells “action” and “cut.”“Everything opens up,” she says. “And I’ve found that the more I practice acting, the better I can navigate this kind of dream space. It’s a space where you don’t really exist.

Did you know that despite having a career that has spanned four decades, celebrated French filmmaker Claire Denis has only had four of her films ever premiere at the Cannes Film Festival? And it’s been 24 years since Denis had a film debut in competition—1998’s “Chocolat” with Isaach de Bankolé. That finally changes this spring when Denis’ new film, “Stars At Noon” premieres and puts her back in the competition frame.

After what was rumored to be a long search, Thierry Fremaux has found his president for the 2022 Cannes Film Festival Jury. Legendary French actor Vincent Lindon, who starred in last year’s Palme d’Or winner, “Titane,” will take the mantle following Spike Lee‘s reign last year.

The 2022 edition of the Cannes Film Festival will include a record number of films directed or co-directed by female filmmakers, one year after Julia Ducouranu’s “Titane” took home the festival’s top award.

Elsa Keslassy International CorrespondentThe Cannes Film Festival has added a string of new titles to its Official Selection, including three movies in competition: Léonor Serraille’s “Un Petit Frere,” Albert Serra’s “Tourment sur les iles” and “The Eight Mountains” by Charlotte Vandermeersch and Felix Van Groeningen (“The Broken Circle Breakdown”).“The Eight Mountains” is an Italian film based on Paolo Cognetti’s 2016 novel. It revolves around a young man who returns to a young man who finds refuge in the Italian village where he spent a summer as a child with his parents.

Claudia Eller Co-Editor-in-ChiefIt’s beyond distressing how women directors continue to get short shrift at Cannes.How could it be that this year only three movies helmed by females will be contenders in the main competition of the world’s most prestigious film festival?It’s horribly disappointing, but far from shocking, given that last year only four out of 21 competition titles were directed by females and considering Cannes’ poor track record when it comes to recognizing women filmmakers competing throughout its 75-year history. After all, just two movies by women directors, Jane Campion’s “The Piano” and Julia Ducournau’s “Titane,” have ever won the coveted Palme d’Or.Of course, I’m thrilled for director Kelly Reichardt (“Showing Up”), Valeria Bruni Tedeschi (“Forever Young”) and Claire Denis (“Stars at Noon”), but nonetheless their movies represent a meager portion of the 18 titles in competition at Cannes.

Elsa Keslassy International CorrespondentIn the run up to Cannes, Gaumont is launching sales on “The Pot of Feu,” Tran Anh Hung’s period romance starring Juliette Binoche and Benoit Magimel. The movie is currently shooting in a French castle.Set in the world of French gastronomy in 1885, “The Pot of Feu” charts the relationship between Eugenie, an esteemed cook, and Dodin, the fine gourmet she has been working for over the last 20 years.

Wilson Chapman editorThe official poster for the 75th Annual Cannes Film Festival has been released, paying tribute to Peter Weir’s beloved film “The Truman Show.”First released in 1998, “The Truman Show” stars Jim Carrey as a man who has spent his entire life unknowingly raised as the subject of a 24/7 reality show. The Cannes poster captures a moment from the climax of the film where Truman escapes from the set of the show, discovering that the sky is a painted wall with a staircase leading to the exit.

The Cannes Film Festival on Tuesday revealed the poster for its upcoming 75th edition, with more than a nod to Peter Weir’s 1998 film The Truman Show starring Jim Carrey as its inspiration.

The full Tribeca Film Festival lineup of 109 feature films from 40 countries and 88 world premieres for the 2022 event that takes place June 9-18 has been announced. It’ll be interesting to see if some of the films at the festival will end up being popular breakouts, land major studio/streamer distribution, or eventually move on to get recognized during awards season.

Although it turned out to be David Lynch-less, this year’s Cannes line-up is in no shortage of big names (complete list here). Claire Denis returns to the competition section for the first time in 34 years with her Nicaraguan ‘80s romance “Stars At Noon”; James Gray premieres his childhood-inspired “Armageddon Time”; and, as the headliner, “Crash” and “Videodrome” director David Cronenberg looks set to return to his body-horror roots with the Viggo-in-chrysalis “Crimes of the Future.” And if that competition doesn’t sound fierce enough already, there’s also a new movie from Japanese director Hirokazu Kore-eda, titled “Broker,” which now has its first trailer.

Cannes Directors’ Fortnight has unveiled its line-up for 2022. Scroll down to see the full list.

When we sit down with Thierry Frémaux he is in pensive mood. As is his wont.

Elsa Keslassy International CorrespondentA few hours after unveiling Cannes Film Festival’s 2022 Official Selection on the Champs Elysees, artistic director Thierry Fremaux sat down with Variety to discuss the festival’s drive to not give in to calls for a cultural boycott of Russian films and filmmakers, efforts to have more female directors in competition, discussions to bring back streamers in a near future and what those rumors about David Lynch in the lineup were about. The all-star competition lineup of this upcoming 75th edition boasts no less than four Palme d’Or winning directors, including Japanese master Kore-eda Hirokazu (Japan) and Swedish helmer Ruben Ostlund (“Triangle of Sadness”), as well new films by David Cronenberg (“Crimes of the Future”), Kelly Reichardt (”Showing Up”), James Gray (“Armageddon Time”) and dissident Russian director Kirill Serebrennikov (“Tchaïkovski’s Wife”).