
Cannes 101: Beyond the red carpet and standing ovations
Tired of too many ads? go ad free now
But behind the flashlights of paparazzi and flowing gowns lies a world that even seasoned cinephiles don't always understand. One that often gets overshadowed by the glam and the glitz.
Festival de Cannes – as the French call it – is a cinema lover's paradise. At this 10-day celebration, films from around the world are given a platform, standing ovations are tallied like Olympic scores, cinematic marvels are honoured, and entry is strictly limited to the film industry.
Who gets to go to Cannes?
Unlike many international film festivals, Cannes is an industry-only event. Screening tickets are not sold to the general public. Credentials are granted to directors, producers, actors, publicists, distributors, and journalists – all of whom must apply for a badge. If accepted, the badge must be carried for access to screenings.
However, film lovers have one option. Some films are played on the beach next to the Palais des Festivals at 9pm during the festival.
Cinephiles can queue up early to catch a beautiful piece of cinema under the stars (There are also some inventive ways, listed online, to 'crash' the festival).
Cannes Film Festival 2025 concluded in May.
How is Cannes pronounced?
Many people pronounce it as 'cahn' or even 'cahns,' but that is incorrect. The correct pronunciation of Cannes is similar to can. Since it's a French word, the trailing 's' is silent. Don't call it con – that's French slang.
How old is Cannes?
It all began with a healthy rivalry.
Tired of too many ads? go ad free now
Back in 1939, France decided it needed a cinematic showstopper to rival the glitzy Venice Film Festival. Jean Zay, then Minister for Education and Fine Arts, dreamed up an international cultural spectacle that would cement France's place at the heart of global cinema.
The stage was set. Louis Lumière, one of the fathers of cinema, was roped in as honorary president. Cannes was ready to roll out the red carpet – but World War II broke out, and the grand opening was abruptly shelved.
It wasn't until September 20, 1946 – more than a year after the war ended – that the French Riviera finally saw a beeline of stars.
Award categories at Cannes
The Official Selection at Cannes presents a diverse slate of films across several curated sections, each screened for the very first time before an audience of film professionals. Some sections culminate in awards, such as the Competition, Un Certain Regard, and La Cinef.
In Competition
Palme d'Or
(French for 'The Golden Palm')
Awarded for the first time in 1955 to the film Marty, directed by Delbert Mann, the Palme d'Or replaced the Grand Prix, which was awarded to the best film In Competition until then.
Around 20 films compete each year in the In Competition section for the festival's top honour, judged by a nine-member jury that changes annually. This year, French actress Juliette Binoche headed the jury.
The only Indian film to win the award remains Neecha Nagar (1946), directed by Chetan Anand.
The only Indian film to win the award remains Neecha Nagar (1946).
Grand Prix (Grand Prize)
This is the second-most prestigious award at Cannes, also judged by the Palme jury. In 2024, India saw Payal Kapadia and the film's wonderful cast – including Kani Kusruti, Divya Prabha and Chhaya Kadam – receive the Grand Prix for All We Imagine As Light. This year, Joachim Trier's Sentimental Value won the honour.
All We Imagine As Light won Grand Prix award in 2024.
Prix du Jury (the Jury Prize)
According to American film critic Dave Kehr, the award is 'intended to recognise an original work that embodies the spirit of inquiry.' It is given to one of the films selected in the In Competition section. This year, the award was shared by Mascha Schilinski's Sound of Falling and Oliver Laxe's Sirat. In 1983, Mrinal Sen's Kharij, based on the novel by Ramapada Chowdhury, won the Jury Prize.
Cannes also honours cinematic excellence with awards for Best Director, Best Actor, Best Actress, and Best Screenplay. Over the years, it has occasionally introduced special categories – like in 1954, Bimal Roy's Do Bigha Zamin won the International Prize, and in 1956, Satyajit Ray's Pather Panchali was awarded Best Human Document.
Un Certain Regard (A Certain Glance)
Introduced in 1978, Un Certain Regard is a part of the Official Selection, but it has its own separate jury, its own set of awards, and is meant to recognise young talent and 'encourage innovative and audacious works' by presenting one of the films with a grant to aid its distribution in France.
The broader categories in the section include Jury Award, Best Actress, Best Director, Best Screenplay, and Best Actor.
However, the festival sometimes hands out awards to films in several other categories as well. India has had its share of glory here too – from Neeraj Ghaywan's Masaan winning the Prix Avenir Prometteur (Promising Future) in 2015 to Anasuya Sengupta's recent Best Actress win.
Neeraj Ghaywan's Masaan won the Prix Avenir Prometteur (Promising Future) in 2015.
Camera d'Or
This one's for the debut filmmakers.
Every year, a dedicated six-member jury at Cannes hands out a special prize to the best first film across the entire festival – whether it's screened in the Official Selection or tucked away in a parallel section. What qualifies? The filmmaker must be making their first fiction feature that runs at least 60 minutes. The idea is simple, yet powerful: to spotlight fresh voices and motivate them for their next big project.
In 1988, Mira Nair's Salaam Bombay won Camera d'Or.
A poster of Mira Nair's Salaam Bombay.
La Cinef
Spotlight on student storytellers. La Cinef is where film schools from around the world send their brightest talent, with fiction and animation shorts (under 60 minutes) vying for a Cannes stamp of approval. A four-member jury picks the best, and the top three walk away with cash grants: €15,000 for the first prize, €11,000 for second, and €7,500 for third. For many filmmakers, this is their very first brush with international recognition.
In 2024, FTII student Chidananda S Naik won the Best Short Film Award for Sunflowers Were the First Ones to Know.
In 2024, FTII student Chidananda S Naik won the Best Short Film Award for Sunflowers Were the First Ones to Know.
L'Oeil d'or (The Golden Eye)
This is the pinnacle for documentaries at Cannes. They're screened under Cannes Classics. Only two documentaries have ever won Palme d'Or – Michael Moore's Fahrenheit 9/11 (2004) and Jacques Cousteau's The Silent World (1956). More recently, in 2022, Indian filmmaker Shaunak Sen brought home the Golden Eye for his hauntingly poetic All That Breathes.
Payal Kapadia's debut documentary, A Night of Knowing Nothing (2021), also won the honour.
Other sections at Cannes
Out of Competition
Films not eligible for competition are screened here, under Special Screenings, Midnight Screenings, and Tributes.
Cinéfondation
This category showcases student films under 60 minutes to inspire the next generation of filmmakers.
Cannes Classics
This section screens restored heritage films and documentaries.
It was launched in 2004.
Cannes premieres
It was introduced to accommodate films that the Festival wished to include In Competition but couldn't, due to the limited number of slots in the main lineup.
Parallel sections
While the Official Selection at Cannes may grab headlines, some of the festival's most exciting discoveries happen off the beaten track – in what are known as the Parallel Sections.
Directors' Fortnight
It is an independent, non-competitive sidebar at the Festival.
It welcomes everything from short films to full-length features, across fiction, non-fiction, animation, and experimental works. The only condition: the director of the film should be present at the screening. Audience members need not be industry insiders, and post-screening Q&A sessions with the filmmakers are a norm. In 2012, Anurag Kashyap's Gangs of Wasseypur earned rave reactions here.
In 2024, Radhika Apte's Sister Midnight made waves under the same banner.
Critics' Week
Organised by the French Syndicate of Cinema Critics, the Critics' Week was created in 1962. The section is credited with discovering some of the biggest names in independent and arthouse cinema, many of whom have gone on to find success at the official festival. Some iconic Indian films have passed through here. Gitanjali Rao's animated short Printed Rainbow left a mark when it premiered in 2006. In 2013, The Lunchbox, starring Irrfan, was screened at Critics' Week and walked away with the Grand Rail d'Or (Viewers' Choice Award).
In 2013, The Lunchbox, starring Irrfan, was screened at Critics' Week.
What is Marche du Film (Cannes Film Market)
You've probably heard a filmmaker say, 'My film was at Cannes!' Technically, they're not lying – but here's the catch: not every film is screened at the Cannes Film Festival. Some are part of its buzzing, parallel event – the Marché du Film, or the Cannes Film Market.
India was named the first 'Country of Honour' at Marche du Film in 2022.
It is the beating commercial heart of the festival. Thousands of film professionals gather just around the corner, making deals, pitching stories, chasing distributors, and hunting for the next big thing in cinema. There are panels, conferences, workshops, and keynote addresses from cinema's most revered names. For many, it's where dreams begin.
Hashtags

Try Our AI Features
Explore what Daily8 AI can do for you:
Comments
No comments yet...
Related Articles


Hindustan Times
an hour ago
- Hindustan Times
Kristin Scott Thomas reveals personal connection to directorial debut ‘My Mother's Wedding'
Kristin Scott Thomas, known for her poise and emotional depth on screen, is stepping behind the camera for the first time with My Mother's Wedding: a deeply personal story inspired by her own life. The film, which premiered at the 2023 Toronto International Film Festival under the title North Star, will be released in theaters on August 8. The Oscar-nominated actor, now 65, co-wrote the film with her husband, journalist John Micklethwait, drawing from the loss of both her father and stepfather: Royal Navy pilots who died in separate training accidents. Kristin Scott Thomas alongside Scarlett Johansson, Sienna Miller, and Emily Beecham(Instagram/kristinscottthomas) Speaking to CBS, she talked about growing up with the weight of unresolved grief, 'I had this feeling of something missing. These events left a huge hole I tried to fill through imagination.' Kristin Scott Thomas brings personal memories to the screen In My Mother's Wedding, Thomas plays Diana, a woman preparing for her third marriage after she was widowed twice: a fictional mirror of her own mother's life. The film explores how Diana and her three daughters reunite for the weekend wedding and are forced to confront their past, their pain, and their fractured relationships, according to another People report. Scarlett Johansson, Sienna Miller, and Emily Beecham portray Diana's daughters, each carrying emotional baggage of their own. Johansson plays a Royal Navy captain, Miller a famous actor, and Beecham a nurse: all women shaped by the shadow of their lost fathers and a complicated mother. Also read: How Fantastic Four: First Steps gives Marvel's 'first family' a second chance Thomas, who spent much of her life in France but is now based in London, said during the interview that her English blood and French culture coexist. Her duality has long been present in her acting career: as comfortable in The English Patient and Darkest Hour as in French-language drama like I've Loved You So Long. Directing, she told CBS, was an extraordinary and exhausting joy. 'The satisfaction that comes from filmmaking is unlike anything else,' Thomas said and likened the creative control to the completeness she searched for as a child writing stories of the family life she never knew. My Mother's Wedding plot Set in the English countryside, My Mother's Wedding is more than a family drama; it is an emotional reckoning with loss, identity, and motherhood. According to People, Diana declares in the film, 'I brought you up to be women, not just daughters,' and urges her children to grow beyond grief. With a supporting cast that includes Freida Pinto and a tone that balances heartbreak with humor, Thomas' debut captures the complex, messy beauty of family and the strength it takes to heal. FAQs Is Kristin Scott Thomas fluent in French? Yes. She is fluent and has starred in numerous French-language films. She has said, "My blood is English, but my culture is French." Did Ralph Fiennes and Kristin Scott Thomas date? Despite their chemistry in The English Patient, there's no confirmed record that they dated. Who is Kristin Scott Thomas's new husband? She is married to journalist John Micklethwait, with whom she co-wrote My Mother's Wedding. Who is Kristen Scott Thomas's ex-husband? She was previously married to François Olivennes, a French gynaecologist. They share three children.

The Hindu
4 hours ago
- The Hindu
Here's what Chennai's parkour community is up to
When you think of parkour, scenes of people scaling rooftops and leaping through walls might come to mind. But that is not all parkour is about, it is a way of life, says the parkour community in Chennai. At a park in Indira Nagar, members of the Parkour Circle begin their regular Sunday morning practice by tackling various obstacles. 'Parkour is all about being comfortable and efficient in your environment. It engages and develops all the senses in the body,' says Prabu M, who has been running the Parkour Circle, mostly outdoors. For him, the introduction to Parkour began with a video clip from a French film 'District B13' on Orkut in 2004. 'This community has grown but also waned, as parkour started to take a hyper-masculine image. But now, with conscious efforts to collaborate with other art forms like theatre and dance, it is more inclusive and bigger than before,' says Mr. Prabu, who also works with children with intellectual disabilities, helping them learn parkour. Meanwhile, at the indoor parkour sessions in Ekkattuthangal, early on a weekday morning, a young crowd gathered at Chennai Parkour practising Kong vault. 'People often think parkour is dangerous and only for the young, but what they don't see is the foundation of building strength, flexibility and mobility for the first six months,' says Vignesh Raghavan, professional parkour practitioner and senior coach at Chennai Parkour. 'Only then, we introduce the more intense techniques. When done right, parkour is safe and for people of all ages,' adds him. Seeing the crowd in their 20s and 30s who have largely been making use of the parkour facilities in Chennai, it is the children now joining the queue. Radhika Kannan, whose 8-year-old daughter Mahika says parkour is a lot of fun, and attends Chennai Parkour classes. 'My daughter was always jumping around the house, and we thought that parkour was something she would enjoy, and a dedicated parkour training centre was safer. Even though she was hesitant to try all the moves at first, she started enjoying the classes a lot, especially as more children have been joining in. The facilities are safe and the coaches take good care of the students,' she says. 'What I have noticed is that, along with her physical strength, her confidence has improved tremendously. Now, she is happy to do any adventure activity, without fear holding her back,' she adds. Ashwath, a 36-year-old management accountant and parkour practitioner for 15 years with the Parkour Circle, started this only to flex among his peers, but it has become his whole lifestyle today. He says the community in the city is livelier currently, because more people are seeking a break from their monotonous routine. 'Here, you don't compete against each other, it is about working on yourself, and parkour indeed makes me mentally strong, not just physically,' says Mr. Ashwath. Stereotypes still persist When it comes to outdoor parkour, the presence of practitioners in public parks often felt like an unwelcome guest, mistaking it for reckless play. Moreover, Mr. Prabu points out a cultural stigma when it comes to women training outdoors. 'When you search for parkour online, what shows up are intense stunts, but we teach parkour as a more grounded practise. It is a constant challenge we are trying to break,' he says . 'There are a lot of women who wish to join, but they are often held back by families who see parkour as something too risky, and they are nudged towards conventional gyms,' adds Mr. Raghavan. As this senior coach was training the members, he says parkour is never about rooftop jumps, which only a few adrenaline-seekers chase but always about using both your environment and your body to move efficiently!


Mint
6 hours ago
- Mint
Kristin Scott Thomas opens up on grief and healing in emotional directorial debut My Mother's Wedding
Kristin Scott Thomas has stepped behind the camera for the first time with 'My Mother's Wedding', a deeply personal directorial debut that draws from the most profound corners of her own life. Speaking candidly about the film's emotional origins in a CBS interview, Thomas shared how the grief and loss she experienced as a child became the creative foundation for the project. 'When I was five, my father was killed, and my mother remarried. And tragically, he was killed five years later,' Thomas revealed. 'And I know that a lot of the time when I was a younger woman, I had this feeling of something missing, this piece of my puzzle missing having grown up with only one parent.' Both men had served as pilots in the Royal Navy's Fleet Air Arm and died in eerily similar training accidents, leaving young Kristin to process unimaginable loss. 'My blood is English, but my culture is French,' she said, reflecting on how her bicultural identity shaped her storytelling instincts. 'The memories of my dad were incomplete, fuzzy, like sketches I played out in my head.' Those fragmented images and the stories she began crafting as a child — simple tales of 'a mommy and a daddy and two children, just doing ordinary things, like going away on holiday and things like that' — would eventually grow into the script for 'My Mother's Wedding'. The film stars Scarlett Johansson, Sienna Miller, and Emily Beecham as three sisters grappling with the death of a father or stepfather, just as their mother prepares to marry again. The process of writing and directing her first film was anything but easy. 'I think it was Sydney Pollock – or it might have been Robert Redford, take your pick,' Thomas laughed. 'One of them said to me, 'You know, you have to be generous. Forget what you're trying to defend. Forget trying to hide. Be more generous.' And I'm not sure I really understood what he meant by that. He just planted a seed, and then I was able to kind of unzip a bit more.' My Mother's Wedding offers a poignant, quietly powerful look at what it means to lose, to remember, and to move forward — and marks a new chapter in Thomas' already celebrated career.