Tag Archives: cannes film festival

The Decline of European Cinema

18 Jul

2nd article in our series on Film Industry Implosion.

With the world recession going on, it’s forced us all to tighten our purse strings. No country has been safe and it’s hit all areas of commerce. Even though the film industry brings in billions of dollars, Hollywood has had many loses too. Most notable are MGM’s woes. However many smaller studios have come and gone with little to no news. It’s the same with European studios and other foreign markets, even within their own countries. Hollywood dominates while films made in the respective country lag behind.

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The Great Gatsby: Kick’s Off The 2013 Cannes Film Festival

13 May

Baz Luhrmann’s adaptation of The Great Gatsby will have the honour of opening this year’s Cannes Film festival on the 15th of May. Apart from the state of New York the film couldn’t have a more perfect setting for a premiere, as F. Scott Fitzgerald wrote parts of the book while vacationing not far from Cannes. The story follows Nick Carraway (played by Toby Maguire), a bond salesman who has just moved to New York. There he meets Jay Gatsby (played by Leonardo DiCaprio), an enigmatic millionaire, who has been secretly in love with Nick’s cousin Daisy (played by Carey Mulligan) since a brief romantic encounter with her five years ago. Daisy however has since gotten married and had a child but Gatsby never gives up hope that he may meet her again. When Daisy and Gatsby finally reunite, Nick starts seeing the glittering façade of the rich world he has come to live in crumble before him and realises that having money and fame isn’t everything they appear to be. Continue reading →

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Blockbusters vs. Indie Films: Part 2

23 May

By Open Book

The 64th Cannes International Film Festival awarded the Palme d’Or to The Tree of Life, The Artist and Melancholia.[1] Some say the Cannes International Film Festival is where films can exemplify a countries social construct. In the first part of this series Blockbuster vs. Indie Films: Part 1, we discussed American consumers preference for blockbuster films and why major studios are veering away from producing specialty films.  In this article we will discuss the current market and future distribution and what consumers can do to support indie filmmakers.

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Blockbusters vs. Indie Films: Part 1

16 May

By Open Book

The 64th, 2011 Festival de Cannes or Cannes Film festival is set to hand out its awards for best film on May 22, 2011.  Cannes is one of the most influential film festivals in the film industry.  Followed closely behind are Berlin International Film festival, The New York Film festival, and Venice Film festival and of course Sundance. [1] Film festivals are where independent filmmakers go to showcase their films in hopes of getting distribution. Yet, in the last two years major studios have scaled back the number of indie films it distributes and or produce. Why? We will uncover the reason distributors are being cautious, plus review why American audiences prefer to see blockbusters in theaters versus indie films.

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