is looking to set up a three-to-four day “pre-screenings” event in May or June in response to industry demand.hears the event will be virtual and will be purely based around industry screenings, without a traditional physical market, and is likely to feature both market and festival titles.
Sources said the reasons for Cannes’ move are twofold. Firstly, I understand that discussions had taken place for the staging of a rival event in May, potentially run by IFTA . Secondly, there has been intense pressure from both sales agents and French distributors for an event to take place early enough for the former to set up summer shoots, and the latter to launch films theatrically in the key summer months, with renewed optimism now for a brighter pandemic picture by then.
If the event does feature titles from the festival it will mean Cannes has to announce its program well in advance of the planned July 6-17 dates for the primary event. That’s a similar situation to Berlin, which had to unveil its program ahead of the European Film Market and long before its planned physical event in June.
How this affects Cannes’ plans for July is yet to be seen, this remains a constantly shifting picture. There were rumours that Cannes is exploring backup dates for the autumn if July is cancelled but that idea is complicated by the Palais being booked out in October by other events.Read More About: