Quizzed in regards to the Academy’s new rules on AI, competition boss Thierry Fremaux known as them “obvious” as he spoke nostalgically in regards to the celluloid movie period. He argued that Francis Ford Coppola’s “Apocalypse Now” was an emblem of that genuine age and “the last organic film” he noticed.
“The helicopters in the Valkyrie scene were the helicopters Francis Ford Coppola actually had,” Fremaux stated. “Today, with digital technology, a filmmaker can say: ‘I have six helicopters — give me 15.’ And then you no longer know what you’re seeing. Even in arthouse films, there are digital effects everywhere now.” The problem, he says, is that there’s a “high risk of lies.”
The competition chief, who’s celebrating his twenty fifth yr on the helm of Cannes this yr, additionally reacted the Academy’s new rule to qualify movies that gained high prizes at six main worldwide movie festivals.
“When people say that America is turning in on itself, that’s not true. In any case, Hollywood is opening up to the world, embracing universality. For us, Cannes is all about that—it’s about universality,” he stated.
Fremaux additionally talked in regards to the competition’s relationship with Hollywood and the dearth of recent blockbusters slated for the 79th version, which can however play Common’s “The Fast and Furious” for its 25th anniversary at a Midnight Screening.
“As you know, Hollywood is undergoing a major shake-up. After COVID, the writers’ strike, which, incidentally, is linked to issues surrounding artificial intelligence, followed by restructuring, mergers, acquisitions, and so on. Amid all of this, the triumph of that brilliant invention known as streaming platforms—all of this necessitates a restructuring,” he stated.
However Fremaux stated he was hopeful about the way forward for American cinema as he famous the business had additionally confronted a disaster within the Sixties proper earlier than the start of the New Hollywood period with Arthur Penn, Martin Scorsese, Francis Ford Coppola and William Fritkin.
Fremaux was additionally requested to react the truth that France will host its subsequent presidential elections subsequent yr, with the nation’s far proper celebration main early polls. Fremaux stated the fest “is often asked to take on a role, to reflect on issues that do not directly concern it,” partly on account of the truth that it was shaped throughout tumultuous instances within the Forties. However he declined to remark additional on the suspected end result of those French elections and their potential impression on the cultural sector.
“It’s true that in a year, we won’t be talking about (these elections) anymore since they’ll be behind us, since the festival will take place afterward,” he stated. “This has happened very often in the past, since presidential elections are generally held in April or May, and the Cannes Film Festival is in May. I myself have known several presidents of the Republic, so we’ll see.”
The competition will kick off on Tuesday with an honorary tribute to Peter Jackson and the world premiere of “The Electric Kiss.” As beforehand introduced, the jury might be presided over with Park Chan-wook.
