Cannes 2008, the final day (and video)

I am now back in the UK and I slept 16 hours last night… and I am still tired.

What a Cannes 2008 was! The final day, when we had the screening and the after screening party, was so much fun! The screening was off the 35mm print in the Palais, and it cost about £140 for the room for half an hour. This was an advantage to screenings in the short film corner as it was presented in all it’s visual and acoustic glory (and not on a computer screen in a window).

One problem we had is that the screening was at 11.30 and the projectionist insisted at starting at 11.30 on the dot, even though we had booked and paid for the full half hour. And believe me, there is not negotiating with these guys. I did manage to squeeze two minutes out of him but even that was a struggle.
 
The after screening party was held at the Century Club on the beach and it was tough to get people in, as so much is always going on. But we got a good group and they watched the film on a big plasma. Dennis Hopper was just next door and Ivan invited him in, but his body guard took of Ivan just as he opening his mouth…! Dennis just smiled and chewed on his cigar.

I also got a very serious offer from an LA based producer who was very impressed with the short, particularly the look and sound, but also the strong commercial sensibilities of the story. He liked that fact that it wasn’t depressing or social realist in content, or about a dripping tap! So now I am thinking about a screening in LA very soon (also in part to get the Oscar accreditation)

On reflection, we learned a few things during this day that we will implement next time.

1. If you screening starts at 11.30, tell everyone it starts at 11.15, giving enough time for people to be a bit late. The Cannes projectionists will start screening on the minute. They won’t care about your problems.

2. Have a hot girl handing out fliers. We were approached at one point by a very attractive, short skirted French film maker and almost EVERYONE took a ticket for her film, and a fair few turned up to her screening. Sorry if this sounds sexist, and yes it is sexist, but it also works.

3. Have something free at your party, ideally drinks and nibbles. If people have to buy their own drinks, they won’t come.

Anyway, I am back and exhausted… If you watch the video, I hope you enjoy it as much as we enjoyed being there.

Onward and upward!

Chris Jones, Film Maker and Author
www.livingspirit.com
mail@livingspirit.com