Diary from Cannes 2013: Day 3 (May 18, 2013)
Oh, just a shot of the dramatic rain at the Cannes Film Festival.
After getting a quick glimpse of the beautiful beach weather that Cannes is known for on Friday, Saturday was full of storms and winds. But that didn’t stop crowds from lining up outside the theaters with their umbrellas to wait for today’s lineup of films. Perhaps the rain actually increased the popularity of the screenings, as festivalgoers preferred ducking in to theaters for shelter, as opposed to ducking into overpriced restaurants.
The day started promisingly with the premiere of Bends, a debut film from Hong Kong’s Flora Lau. The quiet drama starring Carina Lau as a wealthy Hong Kong socialite and Chen Kung as her mainland Chinese chauffeur with a pregnant wife was a nice surprise, but perhaps the quality of the film shouldn’t have been so surprising, because it was clearly accepted into Cannes without the boost of a known auteur at the helm.
Diary from Cannes 2013: Day 2
May 17, 2013: A dramatic day for Cannes today, including gunshots and a jewelry heist. An employee for the luxury jeweler Chopard found that a safe holding $1.4 million dollars worth of jewelry had been stolen from the four-star hotel room the night before. Ironically, Sofia Coppola’s The Bling Ring, about teenagers who steal possessions from celebrities, had just premiered the day before.
Later in the day, a mentally unstable man with a gun fired blanks into the air near a French television interview featuring jury members Christoph Waltz and Daniel Auteuil. Attendees fled the scene, but no one was hurt, and the man was arrested.
But the show went on, regardless. Today was the premiere of Jia Zhangke’s A Touch of Sin:
Cast at Red Carpet event for A Touch of Sin.
Press Conference for A Touch of Sin.
Gala Screening for A Touch of Sin.
Trailer:
As well as the premiere of Anurag Kashyap’s Ugly. He was honored with the French honour Knight of the Order of Arts and Letters for his efforts in the promotion of Indian cinema across the globe.
It was also the premiere of Asghar Farhadi’s The Past, his much anticipated follow up to his 2011 Oscar-winning film, A Separation. This time, an Iranian man’s trip back to France to sign divorce papers causes him to get re-entangled into personal complications of his soon-to-be ex-wife, played by Bérénice Bejo (The Artist). Family drama has never kept me literally on the edge of my seat.
Trailer:
The night ends with a Tony Leung and Carina Lau spotting at the gala screening of Jia Zhangke’s Touch of Sin. Carina Lau stars in Hong Kong director Flora Lau’s first feature Bends, which will be premiering tomorrow as part of Un Certain Regard….
Carina Lau and Tony Leung.
On May 18th in Cannes, amongst all the stars in town for the Cannes Film Festival, there was one “Cinderella” who stood out from the heavy rain. Entertainment publication The Hollywood Reporter presented their first ever International Artist of the Year award to Chinese actress Fan Bingbing. An event was hosted by The Hollywood Reporter, Jimmy Choo and Mouton Cadet at the Grand Hyatt Cannes Hotel Martinez to present the global icon with the award. THR editorial director Janice Min, publisher Lynne Segall and Jimmy Choo CEO Pierre Denis were on hand to present the award to Fan, which was to “recognize a rising a global celebrity whose work has the power to affect entertainment around the world.” The private event was originally supposed to take place at the Mouton Cadet Wine Bar atop the Palais des Festivals, which was moved indoors because of the heavy rainstorms in Cannes. Attendees including actors Naomie Harris, Paz Vega and Oscar Isaac and filmmakers James Toback, McG and Gurinder Chadha.
Fan wore a gorgeous Valentino gown to the event and told THR, “I feel like Cinderella tonight.” She added, “It’s every girl’s dream to wear these designer clothes. But even though I love fashion, the most important thing to me is my acting career.”
Take a look at the gallery for more images from the event!
Diary from Cannes 2013: Day 1
May 16, 2013: It’s my first time at the Cannes Film Festival, attending as a writer/editor on behalf of Asia Pacific Arts and Audrey Magazine. I’ve been told to expect a crazy circus — as there are hundreds of screenings for both the official Film Festival and the simultaneous Film Market — and I can’t wait.
The day before, Baz Luhrman, Leonardo DiCaprio, and Amitabh Bachchan walked the red carpet for the Opening Night film, The Great Gatsby. Also in attendance was the superstar jury, headed this year by Steven Spielberg, which include Ang Lee, Nicole Kidman, Lynne Ramsay, Christoph Waltz, Cristian Mungiu, Naomi Kawase, Daniel Auteuil, and Vidya Balan.
I remember exactly what I was doing on March 11, 2010. I was sitting in a newsroom at UC Berkeley, furiously typing away on my MacBook trying to meet a deadline, and, of course, refreshing my Facebook news feed. And that’s how I found out about the deadly tsunami in Japan. After a frenzied search for the TV remote, I clicked through channel after channel of news coverage about the natural disaster.
Photo: Cnet.com
In only two years, two countries have lost thousands of people and suffered irreparable damage — a 7.0-magnitude quake in Haiti in early 2010 and the tsunami on the east coast of Japan that was brought on by a 8.9-magnitude quake.
But out of these tragedies came an outpouring of support and an onslaught of relief efforts. From businesses and individuals collecting monetary donations and canned goods, to artists auctioning off their famed works of art and one-of-a-kind creations.
With 2011 Cannes Film Festival still underway, stars have been popping up like tulips in glamorous red-carpet wear.
I’m happy to say that most are looking mighty fine and elegant. I mean, take Audrey‘s Summer 2011 cover girl, Li Bing Bing (above). How gorgeous (and prom queen-ready) does she look in this sky blue swan Georges Chakra couture?
Internationally renown actress and L’Oreal brand global ambassador Aishwarya Rai makes a stunning entrance at the 63rd Annual International Cannes Film Festival. Don’t you wish you were there?
Bollywood film star Aishwarya Rai in Elie Saab.
If all those cameras in the background freak you out, check out this next view. Gorgeous, sunny South of France. Sigh.
Actress Aishwarya Rai wearing an Emilio Pucci dress on the Martinez Terrace during the 63rd Annual International Cannes Film Festival on May 13, 2010 in Cannes, France. (Photo by Venturelli/WireImage, courtesy of Mercedes Benz Fashion Week)
Photos courtesy of Mercedes Benz Fashion Week.
