Cannes Film Festival 2018

First of all, this is a magnificent experience that I recommend everyone who is able to take part in. It’s a huge dive into the world of cinema. I, who of late rarely go to see movies in theatres - yes, I’m a bit ashamed to admit it, but it’s the truth - truly enjoyed seeing movies on the big screen.

I was proud to be one of the 82 women who ascended the steps at Cannes, organized by the 50/50 for 2020 Collective, which is promoting more parity and equality (especially in terms of salaries) in the 7^th Art. 82 women to represent the 82 women selected in the Official Competition at Cannes since it began, versus 1,688 men. With only two Golden Palms awarded to women. A very beautiful, simple and moving text was read aloud by Cate Blanchett in English and reprised by Agnès Varda in French.

Laurent Tangy, AFC, began his career working on films such as Lars Blumer’s Mike and Alex Courtes’ The Incident. He went on to work with Cédric Jimenez on HHH and Johan Renck on The Last Panthers. He has just completed the cinematography on Gilles Lellouche’s latest film (and the first one he directed by himself), Sink or Swim, whose male cast is emblematic of French cinema. This film was presented Out of Competition at Cannes this year. (BB)

During the closing ceremony of the 71^th Cannes Film Festival on Saturday, 19 May, the jury, presided by Cate Blanchett, announced the winners of the 2018 Festival. The Golden Palm was awarded to Manbiki Kazoku, by Hirokazu Kore-Eda, cinematography by Ryuto Kondo, the Golden Camera to Girl, by Lukas Dhont, cinematography by Frank van den Eeden, and the CST’s Vulcain Award to Shin Joom-Hee, Art Director of Burning, by Lee Chang-dong, cinematography by Hong Kyung-Pyo.

When Andréa Bescond and Eric Métayer were awarded the Molière Award for Best Solo Performance in 2016 for Les Chatouilles, a play about sexual abuse of children, they didn’t know they’d be back at Cannes two years later with the eponymous film they co-directed. Surrounding themselves with a shock team for their first movie, they called on cinematographer Pierre Aïm, AFC, who had shot Maïwen’s Polisse, a film that strangely resonates with Little Tickles… The film is being presented in the Un Certain Regard section (BB)

About ten years after his graduation from the Image Department of La Fémis, cinematographer David Chizallet, AFC, was recognized for his work on his classmate Deniz Gamze Ergüven’s film Mustang. A loyal collaborator of Elie Wajeman (Alyah, The Anarchists), he has recently been trying his hand at comedy with Eric Toledano and Olivier Nakache’s film C’est la vie!. He had the opportunity to participate in a new adventure thanks to the Chinese film Long Day’s Journey Into Night, directed by Bi Gan, in Competition at the 71^th Cannes Film Festival in the Un Certain Regard section. (BB)

Julien Poupard, AFC, has lit a number of first films, including Claire Burger’s, Marie Amachoukeli’s and Samuel Theis’ Party Girl, Léa Fehner’s Les Ogres, Houda Benyamina’s Divines, and Morgan Simon’s A Taste of Ink. Then he met Pierre Salvadori, a seasoned director, and shot his last film The Trouble with You, selected in the Directors’ Fortnight at Cannes. (BB)

Dominique Colin (I Stand Alone, L’Auberge Espagnole, The French Kissers) shot the first movie by young female Indian director Rohena Gera this year. It is in competition in the Critics’ Week. The film was entirely shot in Bombay, a city to which the Bollywood cinema industry is extremely important. A look at this love story in an upper-class apartment building between a maid and her employer. (FR)

Nicolaj Brüel is a Danish cinematographer who has shot a number of prestigious advertising campaigns for various sectors (automobiles, beauty products, food, etc.). He also filmed the television series “Legends of Cambria” (starring Colin Farrell) and Caradog W. James’ feature-length film The Machine, in 2013. This year, Italian director Matteo Garrone asked him to do the lighting on his new Napolitain opus Dogman. He spoke with us about audacity at Cannes this year, which he feels is an important part of creativity on set. (FR)

In addition to awarding the ExcelLens Prize this year, Angénieux has also decided to recognize the work of a young talent in cinematography. Cecile Zhang, a Chinese cinematographer and recent graduate of the Beijing Film Academy, is the recipient of the award. The AFC met her at Cannes.

Cinematographer Hélène Louvart, AFC, has filmed over fifty feature-length films during her career, and has worked with many French and foreign directors. She filmed two of the foreign feature-length films at Cannes this year: Jaime Rosales’ Petra, selected in the Directors’ Fortnight, and Alice Rohrwacher’s Lazzaro felice. This is the third time that Hélène Louvart has worked with the Italian director. In 2014, The Wonders won the Grand Prix at Cannes. The director is back this year on the Croisette with Lazzaro felice, in Official Competition. (BB)

In 2018, amidst a new and youthful selection of directors, one of Cannes’ seasoned filmmakers is back after been "persona non grata" at the Festival since 2011 as a result of his statements regarding Hitler during the press conference for Melancholia. Lars von Trier is definitely not a neo-Nazi, but his sin was to have made a particularly ill-advised attempt at Scandinavian humour. The House That Jack Built portrays a serial killer played by Mat Dillon, starring alongside Bruno Ganz and Uma Thurman. This is cinematographer Manuel Alberto Claro’s, DFF, third film in a row with the Copenhagener director. (FR)

Following the international success of It Follows, a conceptual horror-thriller portraying the lives of Detroit’s youth, David Robert Mitchell embarked on a much more ambitious project. At the center of the film is Los Angeles, like a labyrinth, and a young dilettantish fan of Nirvana. Malaise, enigmas, and suicide round off this portrait of an America that sparkles on its surface but whose darkness is reminiscent of David Lynch’s cinema. Michael Gioulakis, cinematographer of It Follows, joined ranks with the American director once again for this film, which is in Competition for the Palme d’Or.

Jean-Bernard Marlin garnered critical attention with his two short films, La Peau dure and La Fugue. He offered young cinematographer Jonathan Ricquebourg, AFC, the opportunity to film his first feature-length project, a rough-hewn film with non-professional actors. A graduate of the Ecole Louis-Lumière’s Cinema department (class of 2013), Jonathan began his career with Jean-Charles Hue on Eat Your Bones, a film selected in the Directors’ Fortnight and winner of the 2014 Prix Jean Vigo. Two years ago, he was at Cannes with Albert Serra, for The Death of Louis XIV, awarded the Prix Lumières in 2017. Once again, he is at Cannes this year for an adventure of cinema and light: Scheherazade, selected in the 57^th International Critics’ Week. (BB)

Although he is originally from Norway, Benjamin Loeb has been based in Vancouver for a number of years, and he works in North America and Europe. He has filmed a number of feature-length films sinceı2007 (Hello Destroyer, Wintermarchen), as well as several music videos, short films, and advertising videos. His work was selected in the Directors’ Fortnight with Mandy, a strange revenge film directed by Panos Cosmatos. (FR)

Polish filmmaker Pawel Pawlikowski is back after his highly-regarded film Ida, in 2013 (Oscar for Best Foreign Film) with Cold War, a love story set to a background of music and tension between East and West. His countryman and Oscar nominee Łukasz Żal, PSC, was the director of photography, again in black and white and 1.37 aspect ratio. The film is in the Official Competition for the 2018 Golden Palm at Cannes Film Festival. (FR)

For her first feature-length film as director, photographer Vanessa Filho was lucky enough to be able to convince Marion Cotillard to play the role of a young alcoholic mother who is neglectful of her seven-year-old daughter. Guillaume Schiffman, AFC, and his Easy Rig, shot this project from the eyelevel of a child. (FR)

Some cinematographers work with French directors as much as they do with foreign ones. Antoine Héberlé, AFC, is one of them. Throughout his career, which he began in 1993 with Laurence Ferreira Barbosa on Normal People are Nothing Special, he has worked with Laetitia Masson, Alain Guiraudie, Stéphane Briée, and also with Moroccan director Faouzi Bensaïdi, Palestinian director Hany Abu Assad, and Israeli directors Edgar Keret and Shira Geffen. This year, he is at Cannes for his work on his first Syrian film, My Favourite Fabric by Gaya Jiji, in selection in Un Certain Regard. (BB)