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Jafar Panahi Defies Iran’s Censors with Bold New Film

This is Beirut, 30/09 12:00 - Reading : 4 minute(s)

Cinema Iran Cannes France Censorship Jafar Panahi

Iranian director Jafar Panahi, whose latest film won the top prize at the Cannes Film Festival, told AFP he would continue to defy his country's censors and ignore the risk of returning to prison. His new film It Was Just an Accident, released internationally from Wednesday, chronicles the story of five Iranians confronting a man who could be ...

“My Father’s Shadow”: Nigeria’s First Cannes-Winning Film Returns Home

This is Beirut, 19/09 19:35 - Reading : 5 minute(s)

Film Nigeria Cannes Culture

Now back in Lagos for the film’s local release, Davies reflects on the film’s deeply personal themes and its resonance with a nation still grappling with the legacy of its political past. Akinola Davies, the director of My Father's Shadow, Nigeria's first film to win an award at the Cannes film festival, is savoring his return to Lagos, the ...

'I Love Peru': Raphaël Quenard’s Biting yet Poetic Mockumentary

Marie-Christine Tayah, 14/08 12:30 - Reading : 2 minute(s)

Raphaël Quenard Film Cinema Cannes Culture Art

Balancing fiction and reality, I Love Peru, the feature debut co-directed by Raphaël Quenard and Hugo David, dives with humor and excess into the rise of an improbable leading man. From improvised shoots in hotel rooms to surreal sequences in Peru, the film reveals a character both grotesque and fragile. Premiering at the most recent Cannes Film ...

Cannes Red Carpet Gets a Second Life in Marseille

This is Beirut, 05/06 10:30 - Reading : 3 minute(s)

Cannes Marseille Cinema Movie Culture Art

Walked on for fifteen days by the biggest stars in global cinema, the iconic red carpet of the Cannes Film Festival is now getting a second life in Marseille. Designers, theater troupes, and fashion collectives are repurposing the material into new creative works. “We sell it as a basic fine red carpet, not as the Cannes red carpet,” said ...

‘A Man and a Woman:’ When Lelouch Turns Failure into Grace

Bélinda Ibrahim, 03/06 19:00 - Reading : 5 minute(s)

A Man and a Woman Claude Lelouch Film Story Cannes Deauville

At first, there was nothing but the bitter silence of a man convinced his career was over. In 1965, Claude Lelouch was a young director in free fall. At 27, he had just endured one of the most humiliating flops of his early career: Les Grands Moments – booed at Cannes, ignored in theaters, savaged by critics. “They said I was only good for ...

Adèle Exarchopoulos: Behind the Spotlight, Raw and Unmasked

Marie-Christine Tayah, 26/05 19:00 - Reading : 3 minute(s)

Adèle Exarchopoulos Actress Cinema Cannes Culture Art

Born in Paris in 1993, Adèle Exarchopoulos shot to fame at the 2013 Cannes Film Festival through Abdellatif Kechiche’s Blue Is the Warmest Color. At the request of jury president Steven Spielberg, she was awarded the Palme d’Or alongside the director and her co-star Léa Seydoux—her “greatest love story on screen,” as she recently ...

Cannes Hit by Power Cut as Film Festival Draws to a Close

This is Beirut, 24/05 17:42 - Reading : 1 minute(s)

France Cannes Electricity Cannes Film Festival

A power substation and an electricity pylon were vandalized overnight in the region around France's Cannes, which has been hit by a major blackout on the final day of its film festival, officials said. A substation in the village of Tanneron, which supplies Cannes, was targeted by a suspected arson attack, while the legs of a pylon carrying a ...

Cannes 2025: Films as Living Paintings

Bélinda Ibrahim, 23/05 17:00 - Reading : 4 minute(s)

Cannes Film Festival Cinema Culture Cannes

Some films speak, others depict, but rare are those that feel like paintings. At Cannes 2025, two films in competition stand out for their deep connection to visual art: Renoir by Chie Hayakawa and The Phoenician Scheme by Wes Anderson. The first explores the intimate world of a young girl immersed in Impressionism. The second, more stylized, ...

Cannes Behind the Scenes: Red Carpet, Silent Hands

Bélinda Ibrahim, 20/05 17:00 - Reading : 5 minute(s)

Festival Cannes Cinema Red Carpet France

In Cannes, everything seems to float. Spectacular gowns, knowing glances and intense spotlight beams. Yet, beneath this radiant veneer, hundreds of anonymous figures move quietly behind the scenes. They don’t climb the steps or feature in Instagram stories. But without them, the red carpet would simply be a piece of red fabric. Every ...

Scarlett Johansson Steps Behind Camera in Cannes Debut

This is Beirut, 20/05 12:30 - Reading : 3 minute(s)

Scarlett Johansson Cannes Film Festival Cinema Culture Cannes France

Scarlett Johansson won praise from veteran filmmaker Wes Anderson as she nervously prepared to unveil her debut feature as a director at the Cannes Film Festival on Tuesday. Actors behind the camera are something of a trend in Cannes this year, with Twilight star Kristen Stewart and British actor Harris Dickinson both unveiling their first ...

At Cannes and Beyond, Raphaël Quenard Is the Artist to Watch

Marie-Christine Tayah, 20/05 10:30 - Reading : 2 minute(s)

Raphaël Quenard Cannes Cannes Film Festival France Culture Art

Raphaël Quenard wears many hats: actor, screenwriter, director, producer, and soon, singer. He broke through in 2023 with standout performances in Chien de la casse by Jean-Baptiste Durand and Yannick by Quentin Dupieux. His work in both earned him César nominations in 2024, and he took home the award for Most Promising Actor for Chien de la ...

Cannes, Reimagined: When Style Becomes a Manifesto

Bélinda Ibrahim, 19/05 17:30 - Reading : 4 minute(s)

Cannes Festival Women Cinema Fashion

The Cannes Film Festival has always been a stage, not only for cinema, but for fashion that borders on the theatrical. Every May, the red carpet blooms with extravagant gowns, daring cuts and dramatic silhouettes. But in 2025, something deeper shimmered beneath the surface. Women are using style not to dazzle, but to declare. Less about seduction, ...

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