The Cannes Film Festival will not host Russian delegations as long as Russia’s invasion of Ukraine continues, management has announced.
Russians deprived of the red carpet in Cannes! This is one of the cultural consequences of Russia’s invasion of Ukraine.
The Cannes Film Festival will not host Russian delegations and will not accept “the presence of any authority linked to the Russian government”, as long as Russia’s invasion of Ukraine continues, the leadership announced on Tuesday in a press release.
“It has been decided, unless the war of aggression ceases under conditions that will satisfy the Ukrainian people, not to welcome official delegations from Russia nor to accept the presence of any body linked to the government
Russian”details the largest film festival in the world, which will be held this year from May 17 to 28.
“On the other hand, we want to salute the courage of all those who, in Russia, took the risk of protesting against the aggression and the invasion of Ukraine”, continue the organizers, addressing “artists” and “professionals
cinema (…) which cannot be associated with these intolerable acts and those which bombard Ukraine”.
This is the first time that the Festival, which will be its 75th edition in the spring, has spoken about the Russian invasion of Ukraine.
The opportunity to recall that the very first Cannes edition was to take place in 1939 and to open on September 1, the date of the invasion of Poland by Germany. It was therefore cancelled.
Two days later, France and Great Britain declared war on Germany, shedding plans for a film festival in the south of France for some time.
“Faithful to its history, which began in 1939 in resistance to the Fascist and Nazi dictatorships, the Cannes Film Festival will always be at the service of artists and film professionals, whose voice is raised to denounce violence, repression and injustices, and to defend peace and freedom”, further emphasizes the Festival press release.
Last year, the Russian director, Kirill Serebrennikov under the influence of a ban on leaving the territory, could not come to present his film, “The Fever of Petrov”, in competition at Cannes. An absence that has become habitual… and which has taken on another meaning since the beginning of the war.
A selection of Russian films will be presented to the public during the 74th edition of the Cannes Film Festival, which will be held from July 6 to 17. Some will compete for the coveted Palme d’Or, others will be thrown outside the hustle and bustle of competition.
In 2021, several films put Russia in the spotlight in the two Festival programs, “Feature Film Competition” and “Un Certain Regard”. Three of them were proposed by avant-garde directors.
Previously, Russian directors were of course present in Cannes. In 1979, Andreï Konchalovski had received the Grand Prix of the festival for “Siberiade”. In 1972, it’s “Solaris”, the third feature film by Andrei Tarkovskywhich had won the Festival’s grand prize.
At the same time, the management salutes the courage of certain Russian artists who oppose this war:
“On the other hand, we want to salute the courage of all those who, in Russia, took the risk of protesting against the aggression and the invasion of Ukraine”, continue the organizers, addressing the “artists”. and “cinema professionals (…) who cannot be associated with these intolerable acts and those who are bombing Ukraine”.
Festival ManagementPress release from the Cannes Film Festival
Support for Ukraine is increasing in the cultural world.
Last week the director of the Moscow theater resigned from her post because she did not want to be paid by Putin. Same thing for thee Frenchman Laurent Hilaire, director of the ballet troupe at the Stanislavski Theater in Moscow and former star of the Paris Opera. He announced his resignation from the Moscow institution on Sunday “in view of the geopolitical situation” and was preparing to leave Moscow.
In Marseille, Macha Makeïeff, the director of National Theater feels all the more affected by the distress of the Ukrainians that she herself has “Russian and Italian ancestry”.
In less than a week, the conflict between Russia and Ukraine moved to the field of sport, culture and cinema.
We would love to give thanks to the writer of this article for this outstanding web content
Russian delegations refused at the Cannes Film Festival