There’s no arguing that Cannes is on a roll right now. The world’s most powerful film festival just feels more relevant than ever, riding a wave of Competition breakouts including Anatomy Of A Fall, The Zone Of Interest, Perfect Days, Drive My Car, The Substance and The Seed Of The Sacred Fig – films that hit their groove both critically and commercially.
Its current hot streak reached an apex when last year’s Palme d’Or winner – Sean Baker’s Anora – stormed the Oscar podium five times in March with wins for Baker in picture, directing, original screenplay and editing, and Mikey Madison in actress.
It’s a far cry from even a few years ago when some were saying there could only be one winner in the battle between Cannes and Netflix; that delegate general Thierry Frémaux and his festival were going to have to bow to the inevitable shifts in the industry status quo and eventually accept streaming titles into Competition (despite the strict French windowing rules that prevented Frémaux from acceding to the demand, even if he’d wanted to).
Instead, Cannes stood firm, and Netflix last year came to the festival as a hungry buyer, picking up US and UK rights on Jacques Audiard’s Competition entry Emilia Pérez and backing that fully as its only significant horse in the most recent awards race.
Of course, objectively nothing has really changed – Netflix has for all intents and purposes won the streaming wars, and has the resources and clout to compete on any front it chooses. But in the precarious world of independent arthouse film for which Cannes remains the pre-eminent citadel, even the smallest victories count.
At the same time, concentrated power is not healthy in the long term. For filmmakers and companies who invest all that time, energy, money and strategic planning to give themselves the best possible shot at being selected for one of those precious few slots, and then fail to make the cut, it can leave a lonely road ahead in terms of where to go next. A vibrant festival ecosystem in which Venice and Berlin and other A-list festivals are equally vital and desirable launchpads for filmmakers is good for everyone.
It’s worth adding that a stellar line-up one year can turn on a dime the following. It can even happen to Cannes, which has had its pick of the crop for some time – not every year can yield as much success as the last two. On paper, this year’s Competition and official selection lineups have the hallmarks of delivering another bumper year for Cannes, with titles that look destined to kick off their journeys to audience embrace and awards season contention.
But that’s also an intriguing aspect of the film business – no-one will know until we get there.
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