Cannes Boss Thierry Fremaux Reacts to the Oscars New Rules on AI and International Movies: ‘Hollywood Is Opening up to the World’
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Elsa Keslassy
International Correspondent
@elsakeslassy See All
Quizzed about the Academy’s new rules on AI, festival boss Thierry Fremaux called them “obvious” as he spoke nostalgically about the celluloid film era. He argued that Francis Ford Coppola’s “Apocalypse Now” was an emblem of that authentic age and “the last organic film” he saw.
“The helicopters in the Valkyrie scene were the helicopters Francis Ford Coppola actually had,” Fremaux said. “Today, with digital technology, a filmmaker can say: ‘I have six helicopters — give me 15.’ And then you no longer know what you’re seeing. Even in arthouse films, there are digital effects everywhere now.” The issue, he says, is that there is a “high risk of lies.”
The festival chief, who is celebrating his 25th year at the helm of Cannes this year, also reacted the Academy’s new rule to qualify films that won top prizes at six major international film festivals.
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“When people say that America is turning in on itself, that’s not true. In any case, Hollywood is opening up to the world, embracing universality. For us, Cannes is all about that—it’s about universality,” he said.
Fremaux also talked about the festival’s relationship with Hollywood and the lack of fresh blockbusters slated for the 79th edition, which will nevertheless play Universal’s “The Fast and Furious” for its 25th anniversary at a Midnight Screening.
“As you know, Hollywood is undergoing a major shake-up. After COVID, the writers’ strike, which, incidentally, is linked to issues surrounding artificial intelligence, followed by restructuring, mergers, acquisitions, and so on. Amid all of this, the triumph of that brilliant invention known as streaming platforms—all of this necessitates a restructuring,” he said.
But Fremaux said he was hopeful about the future of American cinema as he noted the industry had also faced a crisis in the 1960s right before the birth of the New Hollywood era with Arthur Penn, Martin Scorsese, Francis Ford Coppola and William Fritkin.
Fremaux was also asked to react the fact that France will host its next presidential elections next year, with the country’s far right party leading early polls. Fremaux said the fest “is often asked to take on a role, to reflect on issues that do not directly concern it,” partly due to the fact that it was formed during tumultuous times in the 1940s. But he declined to comment further on the suspected outcome of these French elections and their potential impact on the cultural sector.
“It’s true that in a year, we won’t be talking about (these elections) anymore since they’ll be behind us, since the festival will take place afterward,” he said. “This has happened very often in the past, since presidential elections are generally held in April or May, and the Cannes Film Festival is in May. I myself have known several presidents of the Republic, so we’ll see.”
The festival will kick off on Tuesday with an honorary tribute to Peter Jackson and the world premiere of “The Electric Kiss.” As previously announced, the jury will be presided over with Park Chan-wook.
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