Hello everyone!

It's the long awaited return of our Postcards From Cannes..Ian has assured us that you all enjoy them and indeed read them, so here we go ..from Cannes 2018...let's hope it turns out to be a vintage year.

To be honest the early signs do not bode well generally, with many regular faces not expected to attend, primarily due to a dearth of high profile main screen Official Selections as widely criticised elsewhere. I guess the stand outs include the STAR WARS spin off SOLO film, the new one from the director of IT FOLLOWS called UNDER THE SILVER LAKE ..which, with a running time of 2 hours and 20 minutes, we are hoping is not another SOUTHLAND TALES style disappointment. Making its post Sundance international debut is Panos (BEYOND THE BLACK RAINBOW) Cosmatos' Nicolas Cage rager MANDY. There are some other eagerly awaited titles of course ..but let's see what stirs the loins of the collected critics and jurors..

On the Cannes Market (or Marche du Film) front there are a ton of genre entries..many of which we have pre screened and selected for your FrightFest August delectation..we have locked around 50 features so far..so we are in great shape for this year..and of course we will view and confirm some additional selections from our screening lists..there are circa 1000 films showing in the market..everything from Disco Docs..Alan has already seen and loved (of course) STUDIO 54, to talking animal pics for example PATRICK the talking dog..and everything in between..we'll try and track down some funny and/or cool poster art for you all to enjoy...watch our Twitter feeds.

We are also watching a TON of August entries via the submissions process on FilmFreeway..some absolute gems have already presented themselves..very exciting!

The other great thing about Cannes is seeing and catching up with all of our international friends and fellow festival directors..we are all PRAYING for good weather this year..and it's looking decent so far..

FInally (for now) it was Alan's birthday on Saturday, so we had cakes, drinks, laughs, swearing, stories and good times..a lovely night.

BON FESTIVAL!

Until next time..

Paul.

We are off and running, and for me, it is my 26th trip to the south of France and the world’s number one film event. As it has been the pattern that we have established over the last few years, we arrived here a few days early for a little bit of R&R before everything kicks off. Our now traditional card school was no less competitive as ever. However whereas last year I wiped the floor with everyone, this year I was not so lucky.

Proceedings started on Tuesday this year; it usually has always been a Wednesday so, on Monday morning, I was up early and was the very first customer at the new automated get your accreditation location. Very efficient and I was in and out in less than a minute.

The first few days of the festival are always a whirlwind of catching up with my festival friends from all around the world. I spent Tuesday evening at the Le Petit Majestic, the world-famous late-night haunt of festival goers. It’s an even bet that everyone will swing by there at some stage either going to or coming from an event and that’s what happened. I swapped stories with Simeon Halligan, one of the directors of Manchester’s Grim Up North. I lamented with Julian Richards, a proud new dad, sales agent and film director extraordinaire discussed the changing landscape of the industry. I know, riveting, but vital to us and caught up with Tim League head honcho at Fantastic Fest in Austin along with heaps of others too numerous to mention. It’s fun hearing about what everyone has been up to since I last saw them.

Last year I commented on the level of security and this year it has been ratcheted up even further. There are soldiers and armed police on every corner, and you need to go through airport-style security now to get into the festival.  I had been worried before coming because since last year I'm now the proud owner of a bit of technology implanted in my chest that keeps my heart ticking over. Great, but the downside of all this is that it doesn’t play well with all these gadgets, and don’t get me started on microwaves either. I needn’t have worried because as always the French have their ways so I just wander up to a checkpoint, flash my little card that confirms I have this thing, and I get waived through. Everyone else has to take all their stuff out of their bags and pockets. On Wednesday a security lady even hugged me.

On the film front, I have been slacking a bit, I know. No excuses other than the weather has been excellent. I’ve only seen one film so far, and that was David Barker’s PIMPED with Ella Scott Lynch and Benedict Samuel, which I enjoyed. It’s a story about a woman duped by two men into a sick and twisted game. What could go wrong with that then? Today, I am looking forward to SUPERGRID a post-apocalyptic thriller set not too far in the future the latest film from the director of the WOLFCOP movies Lowell Dean.

Till the next time.

Ian.

The beginning of the end  - Last night along with Paul and Alan I attended the usually fun Scottish Party on the beach here in Cannes, and it lived up to the norm.  There is nothing too shabby about chatting with friends and acquaintances on the beach in the South of France with some hansom catering chucked in to boot.  But that said, as the cold light of day dawned on Wednesday, there was a mass stampede for the airport as many we know where heading home.  The three of us are made of sterner stuff and will be sticking it out until Saturday.

I got myself caught out quite badly on a film playing here this year and had to eat some humble pie in my opinion. I had been happy to tell anyone who asked how bad it is.  It turns out it isn't.  Let me explain.  There is a film that will be in the FrightFest line-up this August that when it was suggested that we include, I defaulted to my grumpy over my dead body persona.  Well, maybe not over my dead body, but I did question the sanity of the person, who will remain nameless, Paul, anyway, you get the drift.   I had seen the film, and I knew best. Yeh. So, I decided to go and see it again, you know, just make too make sure that I was correct.  Well it turns out, and this is where it begins to get embarrassing, I hadn't seen the film, and it wasn't bad at all.  I have no idea where I had gotten the idea that I had seen the movie, but the long and the short of it is that I hadn’t.  And, to add insult to injury, I enjoyed jumping along with the rest of the audience watching.  An interesting experience and one I will learn from.

I have been taking meetings and watching films for my First Blood strand while here.  I was becoming a little worried that I only had one movie for the five slots that I need. I'm a little happier now having looked at the submissions that have arrived in the last few days and have talked to several first-time feature filmmakers here. If what was pitched to me delivers, we will have five exciting First Blood films to offer you all in August.

Until next time...

Ian.