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Following a press conference announcing the Cannes lineup, festival director Thierry Frémaux announced several hot topics, including Francis Ford Coppola’s 135-minute blockbuster “Megalopolis,” which does not yet have a distribution deal. mentioned.
Coppola’s $120 million independent film, “Megalopolis,” starring Adam Driver, was selected for competition at the Cannes Film Festival but has no distribution deal in France.In theory, that shouldn’t be a problem because, as Frémaux says, “there are quite a few undistributed films in the official section.” variety. But in the case of “Megalopolis,” it may be a ticking time bomb.
If “Megalopolis” were to be sold to a streamer with no plans to release it theatrically in France, there would be an uproar on the Croisette and within local box offices. Most importantly, it conflicts with Cannes’ infamous rule that requires all films in competition to be distributed theatrically in France. The strict guidelines stem from widespread competition in 2017 when two Netflix films were entered into competition: Bong Joon-ho’s Okja and Noah Baumbach’s Meyerowitz Stories. It was first established by the Cannes Film Festival Board of Directors in response to the scandal. Since then, Netflix hasn’t returned to Cannes, instead screening the film at the Venice Film Festival.
At the moment, most major independent distributors in France say: variety They have not seen the film and have not been in contact with Coppola’s lawyer, Barry Hirsch. Hirsch hosted an IMAX screening for buyers a few weeks ago and is said to be actively negotiating with studios and streamers with a view to signing deals. Of course, if sold to Apple or Amazon, the film could still receive theatrical distribution in France. Similar to Martin Scorsese’s Killers of the Flower Moon, an Apple movie released theatrically by Paramount. Netflix, on the other hand, is not releasing the film in French theaters. This is due to local window regulations that require subscribers to wait 15 months after a movie is released in theaters before they can watch it.
Frémaux, referring to pending distribution plans for “Megalopolis,” said Coppola is an “artist.” “He made the movie with his own money. And he finished this movie. He’s showing it to us and other people in the United States and thinking about the strategy for the movie.” he said. “Let’s take a look. But of course, I’m not the one to talk about that.”
Asked about a possible sale to a streamer such as Netflix, which would exclude release in French cinemas, Frémaux replied with a smile: And let’s take a look. We love improvising! ”
Frémaux also talked about how the number of female directors participating in the competition has decreased from seven last year to four this year. He said Cannes was “at the end of the chain” and “an echo of world cinema.”
“It takes half a century to fully understand trends, but even if there are only four competing directors, the trend is that there are more and more female directors worldwide,” he added. . Committees are also beginning to consider gender throughout the selection process. He also revealed that Cannes will soon publish a study on the representation of female directors at the festival.
“Proportionally, there are far more female directors in the official selection section of the Cannes Film Festival than there are in the world,” he said.
Regarding the strong presence of genre films in the competition, Frémaux cited Universal Pictures’ “The Substance,” directed by Coralie Farge, starring Demi Moore and Margaret Qualley.
“Probably a few years ago, we wouldn’t have dared to do a gore movie like that. And now, let’s be brave, because it’s a good movie,” he said. “We recognize that films, whether comedies, horror or westerns, need great filmmakers. And Coralie Ferguito is a great director we wanted to highlight. is.”
Farget enters the competition alongside Gilles Lelouch’s L’Amour Ouf, a music-filled romance film starring Adèle Exarchopoulos and François Civile and featuring choreography by (La) Holde. He is one of the few French filmmakers to do so. Marcello Mio, directed by Christophe Honoré, starring Catherine Deneuve and Chiara Mastroianni. “Emilia Perez”, a Spanish-language musical film directed by Jacques Audiard, starring Zoe Saldana, Selena Gomez, Edgar Ramirez, and Carla Sofia Gascón. Farjet and Lelouch will both be making their competitive debut.
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