Latest news with #Cineum
Daily Tribune
26-05-2025
- Entertainment
- Daily Tribune
Power Outage Hits Cannes Hours Before Film Festival Finale
A widespread power outage struck southeastern France on Saturday, affecting approximately 160,000 households in the Alpes-Maritimes department and causing brief disruptions in the city of Cannes—just hours before the prestigious Cannes Film Festival was set to announce its top honors. According to France's electricity network operator RTE, the blackout was triggered by a fallen high-voltage power line earlier in the morning. The situation was compounded by an overnight fire at an electrical substation near Cannes, which had already strained the local power infrastructure. Festival organizers reported early-day disruptions but confirmed that operations at the main venue, the Palais des Festivals, swiftly transitioned to an independent power source to ensure the show would go on. 'All scheduled events and screenings, including the Closing Ceremony, will proceed as planned and under normal conditions,' said a statement from the festival. 'At this stage, the cause of the outage has not yet been identified. Restoration efforts are underway.' Despite the swift action, some satellite venues, including Cineum, experienced temporary screening delays. Public services were also affected—traffic lights in Cannes and nearby Antibes failed after 10 a.m., leading to congestion and confusion across key roads. Businesses along the famous Croisette promenade closed temporarily, with local shops and vendors operating cash-only due to electronic payment disruptions. Train services in and around Cannes also faced delays. Authorities urged residents and visitors to exercise caution while moving around the region as technicians continued to restore electricity across affected areas.
Yomiuri Shimbun
25-05-2025
- Entertainment
- Yomiuri Shimbun
Arson Suspected as Power Outage in Southeast France Disrupts Final Day of Cannes Film Festival
AP Shop employees wait during an electricity outage in Cannes, southern France, Saturday, May 24, 2025. CANNES, France (AP) — French authorities believe arson may have played a role in a power outage Saturday in southeast France that threatened to jeopardize the Cannes Film Festival's closing celebrations, including the much-anticipated Palme d'Or ceremony. Power was restored hours before the ceremony, around 3 p.m. local time, as music began blasting again from beachfront speakers. The end of the blackout was greeted with loud cheers from locals. Authorities were investigating the likelihood of arson in a fire at an electrical substation near Cannes that weakened the grid overnight, a spokesperson for the French national gendarmerie said. The power outage happened hours later, after a high-voltage line fell at another location. Authorities were investigating what caused that line to collapse. About 160,000 households in the Alpes-Maritimes area lost electricity. In a statement, Laurent Hottiaux, the prefect for the area, condemned 'serious acts of damage to electrical infrastructures.' 'All resources are mobilized to identify, track down, arrest and bring to justice the perpetrators of these acts,' said Hottiaux. Cannes Film Festival organizers confirmed the outage affected the early activities of Saturday and said the Palais des Festivals — the Croisette's main venue — had switched to an independent power supply. 'All scheduled events and screenings, including the Closing Ceremony, will proceed as planned and under normal conditions,' the statement said. 'At this stage, the cause of the outage has not yet been identified. Restoration efforts are underway.' Traffic lights in parts of Cannes and the surrounding city of Antibes stopped working after 10 a.m., leading to traffic jams and confusion in city centers. Most shops along the Croisette remained closed, and local food kiosks were only accepting cash. Train service in Cannes was also disrupted. Screenings at the Cineum, one of the festival's satellite venues, were briefly suspended, the festival added. The Palme d'Or — the festival's most prestigious prize — was set to be awarded Saturday night, with top contenders including Joachim Trier's family drama 'Sentimental Value,' Jafar Panahi's revenge thriller 'It Was Just an Accident,' Kleber Mendonça Filho's political thriller 'The Secret Agent,' and Óliver Laxe's desert road trip 'Sirât.'
Qatar Tribune
25-05-2025
- Entertainment
- Qatar Tribune
Power restored in Cannes after suspected arson disrupts film festival
Paris: Electricity has been restored in the southern French city of Cannes after a major power cut disrupted the closing weekend of the international film festival, with police suspecting an act of arson. Some 160,000 homes in the coastal resort and neighbouring municipalities had their power restored on Saturday, electricity network operator RTE wrote on X. The film festival's awards ceremony will go ahead as planned on Saturday evening, the organizers have confirmed. The main venue - the Festival Palace - has its own independent power supply, so the festival programme continued as normal for the most part despite the power cut. However, film screenings at the Cineum, a multiplex cinema located outside the city centre, were interrupted. The Cannes Film Festival is considered one of the world's most prestigious, along with Venice. This year, 22 films are competing for the top prize, the Palme d'Or. Police are still investigating the power cut, with a night-time fire at an electricity station believed to be the reason for the outage. A police spokeswoman said authorities believe the fire, in the municipality of Tanneron, may have been started deliberately. However, she was unable to say whether there was a connection between the incident and the film festival. According to French media reports, a pylon also fell onto a high-voltage power line in the morning. Le Parisien newspaper reported that the pylon had been tilting strangely at the time. It is not yet clear whether the incident had a criminal background. (DPA)
Yahoo
24-05-2025
- Entertainment
- Yahoo
Widespread French power outage shuts down Cannes Festival theater, closing ceremony expected to continue
A suspicious fire hit the city of Cannes with a widespread loss of power Saturday morning — just hours ahead of the film festival's closing ceremony. Several movies were wiped from the schedule, but the majority of the iconic event, including the final bash, will not be affected because organizers swiftly found an alternative power source. 'A power outage is currently affecting the city of Cannes and surrounding areas,' the festival said in a statement shared with The Post. 'The Palais des Festivals has switched to an independent power supply, allowing all scheduled events and screenings, including the Closing Ceremony, to proceed as planned and under normal conditions. 'However, screenings at the Cineum have been temporarily suspended and will resume as soon as power is restored.' What caused the widespread outrage has not been identified, but police suspect arson. 'We are looking into the likelihood of a fire being started deliberately,' said a spokesperson for the French national gendarmerie. No arrests have been made. The power was cut across much of the Alpes-Maritimes region in southern France, including Cannes. The power went out shortly after 10 a.m., including in festival theaters that were in the midst of screening films. Internet was also down across the city, with the outage reportedly reaching as far as 6 miles outside of Cannes. It is not clear how long the Cineum Imax theater at the festival will remain affected — 17 films were slated to be screened at the venue today, including two movies starring Josh O'Conner, 'The Mastermind' and 'The History of Sound,' the latter also starring Paul Mescal. Organizers expect to dole out the coveted Palme d'Or (Golden Palm) for best film, along with other awards like the Grand Prix and Jury Prize, during the closing ceremony. With Post Wires
Leader Live
24-05-2025
- Leader Live
Power outage hits Cannes Festival and disrupts traffic in south-east France
About 160,000 households in the Alpes-Maritimes department lost electricity after a high-voltage line fell on Saturday morning, electricity network operator RTE said on X. The outage came hours after a fire at an electrical substation near Cannes overnight had already weakened the grid. Police have opened an investigation into possible arson. 'We are looking into the likelihood of a fire being started deliberately,' said a spokesperson for the French national gendarmerie. Laurent Hottiaux, the prefect of the Alpes-Maritimes department, condemned 'serious acts of damage to electrical infrastructures'. 'All resources are mobilised to identify, track down, arrest and bring to justice the perpetrators of these acts,' said Mr Hottiaux. Cannes Film Festival organisers confirmed the outage affected the early activities of Saturday and said the Palais des Festivals – the Croisette's main venue — had switched to an independent power supply. 'All scheduled events and screenings, including the Closing Ceremony, will proceed as planned and under normal conditions,' the statement said. 'At this stage, the cause of the outage has not yet been identified. Restoration efforts are underway.' Screenings at the Cineum, one of the festival's satellite venues, were briefly suspended, the festival added. Traffic lights in parts of Cannes and the surrounding city of Antibes stopped working after 10am, leading to traffic jams and confusion in city centres. Most shops along the Croisette remained closed, and local food kiosks were only accepting cash. Train services in Cannes were also disrupted. Authorities said restoration efforts are ongoing and urged residents to remain cautious during travel.
