Cannes 2009

The Winners at the 62nd Annual Cannes Film Festival

May 24, 2009 – Cannes, France

By Phillip Nakov

In a short, yet to the point closing ceremony from  the Palais des Festivals in Cannes this evening, the jury awarded the top prizes to the films in competition at the close of the 62^nd Annual Cannes Film Festival.  All of the awards were delivered in a telecast that ran just about an hour and without commercials. The Oscars could learn a thing or two about keeping award ceremonies brief.

Also unlike the Oscars in the US which states ‘the award goes to…’ instead of the winner is… they still say ‘the winner of the Palme d’Or is…’ I think a win is a win, regardless of how it is cloaked in a feel-good euphemism.

The first prize of the evening was given to a young 21 year old film maker, Joao Salvaviza, for his short film “Arian.” He looked decidedly surprised that he had won and his bow tie was almost completely hanging on its side as he climbed the stage to receive his award. He dedicated the prize to all the youth who are making movies.

The next prize, the Camera d’Or (The Golden Camera) is a special prize given out by the jury for a film at the festival. This prize went to the film Samson and Deliliah by . He was moved and could not say much more than, “Vive Cannes and Vive le Cinema.” To which the audience wildly applauded.

The Jury Prize was a tie and was given to: "Fish Tank," by Andrea Arnold (Britain) and "Thirst," By Park Chan-wook (South Korea). They both gave short acceptance speeches and were all smiles.  She shared the award with South Korean director Park Chan-Wook, whose film Thirst is an erotic horror about a priest who becomes a vampire after a botched medical experiment. He too has form at the festival, scooping the Grand Prix in 2003 for Oldboy.

Austrian actor Christoph Waltz – in perhaps the biggest shock of the ceremony. Though many agreed he stole the show as sadistic SS Colonel Hans Landa in Quentin Tarantino's ‘Inglourious Basterds,’ no one imagined the jury would award a film that many thought was the biggest disappointment

Though the movie was shut out of the major prizes, ‘Antichrist’ did not leave empty handed: Dafoe's co-star Charlotte Gainsbourg won best actress for her role as a grieving mother. The scene in which she performs a clitoridectomy on herself was for many the enduring image of this year's festival. One wonders if the more outrageous the performance on screen will ultimately just win the actor’s prizes. ‘Antichrist’ by Lara Van Trier, who was not at the Closing Ceremony, was panned as one of the worst films in the festival.

The full list of winners follows. You can log on to http://festival-cannes.com/en.html to watch the press conference and photo call following the closing ceremony festivities in Cannes.

·         Palme d'Or (Golden Palm): "The White Ribbon," by Michael Haneke (Austria)

·         Grand Prize: "A Prophet," by Jacques Audiard (France)

·         Jury Prize: "Fish Tank," by Andrea Arnold (Britain) and "Thirst," By Park Chan-wook (South Korea).

·         Special Prize: Alain Resnais

·         Best Director: Brillante Mendoza, "Kinatay" (The Philippines)

·         Best Actor: Christoph Waltz, "Inglourious Basterds" (United States)

·         Best Actress: Charlotte Gainsbourg, "Antichrist" (Denmark)

·         Best Screenplay: Feng Mei, "Spring Fever" (China)

·         Camera d'Or (first-time director): "Samson and Delilah," by Warwick Thornton (Australia)

·         Best short film: "Arena," by Joao Salaviza (Portugal)

So Michael Haneke takes home the Palme d'Or at the 62nd Cannes film festival for his well-received though not the leading contender, ‘The White Ribbon.’ Though highly acclaimed, there had been a feeling it might fall victim to Haneke's close relationship with jury president Isabelle Huppert, who has starred in two of his most recent films. It seems that the accusations of favouritism were evidently felt to be less pressing than the need to reward the film's standout brilliance.

And that wraps it up for us and the whole MovieSet.com crew from here in the south of France. It has been a terrific, fast-paced and exciting two weeks. We’ve seen so many great movies, some not so great and some that we just wondered how they ever got made. There is no other festival like it in the world. We thank the Festival de Cannes press accreditation committee for welcoming MovieSet.com so graciously at this year’s festival. We hope you have enjoyed our coverage of the 62^nd Annual Festival de Cannes (Cannes Film Festival) as much as we enjoyed bringing it to you.  The response has been tremendous from around the world and so till next year, au revoir from the Croisette here in Cannes and I’ll see you in line at the concession stand!

Press Conference Highlights for Gilliam’s ‘Imaginarium of Dr. Parnassus’

Highlights from the Press Conference for Terry Gilliam’s ‘Imaginarium of Dr. Parnassus’ and an UPDATE about ‘Don Quixote’

May 22, 2009- Cannes, France

By Phillip Nakov

This morning we were fortuante to be able to nab a coveted spot at the standing room only and long-anticiapted press conference for Terry Gilliam's 'Imaginarium of Dr. Parnassus' here on the final of three days of the 62nd Annual Cannes Film Festival.

Perhaps best known as the movie in which Heath Ledger began filming but never finished before his untimely death, Gilliam brought on Johnny Depp, Colin Farrel and Judd Law to fill in the void left for the role of Tony.

The ‘Imaginarium of Doctor Parnassus’ is a fantastical morality tale, set in the present-day. Dr. Parnassus with his extraordinary travelling show "The Imaginarium" offers to members of the audience an irresistible opportunity to enter their universe of imaginations and wonders, by passing through a magical mirror. But Dr. Parnassus is cursed with a dark secret. An inveterate gambler, thousands of years ago he made a bet with the devil, Mr. Nick, in which he won immortality. Centuries later, on meeting his one true love, Dr. Parnassus made another deal with the devil, trading his immortality for youth, on condition that when his daughter reached her 16th birthday, she would become the property of Mr. Nick. Now it is time to pay the price... In this captivating, explosive and wonderfully imaginative race against time, Dr. Parnassus must fight to save his daughter and undo the mistakes of his past once and for all!

Attending the press conference today were Terry Gilliam (Director), Lily Cole (Valentina), Verne Troyer (Percy), Andrew Garfield (Anton), Amy Gilliam (producer), Samuel Hadida (producer).

The conference started on a lighter note with Amy Gilliam, Mr. Gilliam’s daughter, joking about her relationship with her father, working with him on the picture and how they settled disagreements. She said it was hard to tell her dad no. But he advised her that he knew best… to which she replied, she did. (Laughter)

At which point the next question dealt with the untimely passing of Heath Ledger and how Mr. Gilliam came to decide to cast Judd Law, Johnny Depp and Colin Farrel to replace him. His initial reaction was to close the production down as he did not see how he could continue without him. Fortunately he was surrounded by really good people who said he could not be a lazy bastard and that he would have to finish the movie for Heath. He discussed for a long time how to replace Heath and finally decided it would be most respectful to not recast him with one actor. Since in the movie there is a magic mirror and Heath’s character passes through the mirror three times, he decided it would be three actors that would stand in for Heath. He started calling friends that knew and loved Heath. It had to be the nature. Everyone was determined to finish the film and it was people’s love for Heath that propelled the project forward.

The next question dealt with the Ledger family and their participation with Mr. Gilliam’s decision to continue the production following Heath’s death. His initial meeting was first all tears then switched to laughter. They were completely supportive of his decision and they have yet to see the picture so it will be a surprise for them when they see it.

Mr. Gilliam went on to state that although Heath passed away over a year ago, he was still alive and well on film and has been with Mr. Gilliam in the edit room every day as he saw him on screen as he edited the film for the festival here in Cannes.

There was an overall love fest when it came to discussions of working with Heath Ledger. The cast and Terry were extremely warm, kind and complimentary of his work and his style on set. Heath was described as extremely passionate, brilliant and energetic. He lifted everyone up and enthused everyone on the set.

It was also noted that it was difficult for the three actors who stepped in to fill his shoes… not only because he had such large feet… but because they were all friends of his as well and they were all moved and touched so much by him. But everyone rallied together to support each other and keep the Heath’s energy alive and strong on set.

A smart-alecky journalist from Iceland jokingly asked if Mr. Gilliam made a pact with the devil to get a movie made? (This is in reference to Dr. Parnassus in the movie having made a pact with the devil himself.) Laughter ensued from the press-corps and the guests on the dais. To which Mr. Gilliam’s wittily replied “I just made a movie with Sammy (Hadida), come on… that’s it!” “But we got the movie at the end,” added Samuel Hadida wryly with a smile.

Terry Gilliam wrote Verne Troyer’s part of Percy with him in mind. Gilliam stated that he was bored seeing Verne in all those comedies and wanted to show that he was a brilliant actor.

The actors spoke about the difficulty of working against a green screen and acting in environments that weren’t even there. It was a challenge but thanks to the direction and brilliant imagination of Mr. Gilliam made it so much easier.

None of the cast has yet seen the movie and Mr. Gilliam is excited for them to all see what he ended up making them look like. The premiere is tonight (May 22, 2009) and is screening out of competition.

Perhaps the biggest news to come out of the press conference was the confirmation by Terry Gilliam of the restart of ‘Don Quixote.’ The script has been rewritten and is back from the lawyers. They have rewritten it and Jeremy Thomas is producing and the plan is to begin shooting next spring time. He then stated that he had nothing more to add except that “we are at the beginning stage. Get the money. Get the bodies and let’s go.”

The press conference was then halted as that was the last question before Gilliam and his team posed for photos and signed autographs for a few minutes before being led out.

You can watch the full press conference shortly. Also check out some of the photos we snapped of Lily, Terry and Verne entering and exiting the press conference.

Come say hello to the MovieSet crew at the Palais in Cannes

Meet Ryan, Phillipe, Massoud and the rest of the MovieSet team on the Palais throughout the festival at Stand # 26.03. They are assisting producers to set up promotional Sitelets and giving away MovieSet branded 1GB Flashdrives.

MovieSet is an official sponsor of the PRODUCERS NETWORK and will be hosting the HAPPY HOUR on Sunday May 17th from 5 PM to 7 PM at the Producers Club (Village International - Pantiero, pavilion 210).

Reporter lashes out at Brokeback director Ang Lee

By Quinn Bender

Oscar-winning director for Brokeback Mountain, Ang Lee, was tongue-lashed in Cannes Saturday by a Brazilian reporter who decried the homosexual themes in Lee's films.

During a press conference for the director's latest comedy-drama, Taking Woodstock, a story about the legendary music festival which features a closet homosexual in the lead role, the reporter derailed the conference with a minutes-long diatribe of how Brazilians, he said, find the gay-themes repulsive.

The moderator eventually cut him off then offered Lee the chance to respond: "Mr. Lee, the gentleman seems to detect a threat of homosexuality."

The soft-spoken Lee, almost on cue from the laughter of many among the hundreds of journalists, said accepting other people's homosexuality is simply like the era portrayed in his film. "You just have to go with the flow," he said. 

"I think we [human beings] are composed with many elements inside. Everybody is very complicated.

"I'm fascinated by great stories -- these just happen to revolve around homosexuality... I hate being categorized as a certain genre of filmmaker. I want to be seen as complicated."

Asked later by Movieset if his remarks were intended to be hostile, the reporter brushed off the incident, saying he was joking with Lee, that his comments were designed simply to amuse his conservative viewers.

Taking Woodstock tells the true story of Elliot Tiber, played by Demetri Martin, a down-on-his-luck interior designer in New York. His homosexuality however is not central to the plot. He lands a deal to hold a small concert next to his parents' property in order to save their farm from foreclosure. Three weeks later, half a million people arrive in White Lake, New York, and Tiber finds himself swept up in a generation-defining experience that would change his life, and American culture, forever.

Lee described Taking Woodstock as "a small film around the edges of a big event."

"[Woodstock] is an iconic symbol. It's been romanticized. It was dirty and it was filthy, but you have to give those kids credit. They had three days of peace and music. I don't think you could do that today."

Martin Scorsese leads tribute to legendary critic, Roger Ebert

By Quinn Bender

In a rare appearance the famous film critic, author and journalist Roger Ebert returned to the Cannes Film Festival today for a special dedication ceremony, presided over by director and friend Martin Scorsese. The Oscar-winning filmmaker joined US Consulate delegates and Festival heads outside the American Pavilion in a ribbon-cutting ceremony to rename the press conference room as The Roger Ebert Conference Center.

"I can't think of anyone else who deserves it as much," Scorsese said. "Your name has become synonymous with the love of cinema... which you shared with the world and continue to share.

"Over the years [you provided] very strong support and comradeship, even during difficult times -- and criticism! Which I always found to be very well thought out," he added, drawing laughter from a small gathering of press and curious festival goers.

Ebert was gracious and buoyant throughout the brief ceremony. It's the first time he has attended the festival since 2005 -- in 2006 Ebert suffered post-surgical complications related to thyroid cancer, which required the partial removal of his jaw bone and left him unable to speak.

Typing his words of thanks into a computer voice simulator, Ebert was smiling and animated as the crowd listened on.

"I love this festival. I have spent seven years of my life here, one week at a time. It is the best place in the world to see a movie," he said.

Ebert lauded the American Pavilion's history of attracting top filmmakers for press interviews. He then delivered a special message to the American film students working at the Pavilion, several of whom gathered in the light rain for the dedication ceremony.

"Look around, meet some of these people in [the press] room. In their careers and in their values they represent the hopes of the art of cinema at a time -- above all -- [when] we need more people like them."

Ebert's movie reviews are syndicated to more than 200 newspapers around the world. He has written more than 15 books, and in 1975 was the first film critic to win a Pulitzer Prize. Ebert is also the first film critic to receive a star on the Hollywood Walk of Fame.