Cannes to collaborate with Venice Film Festival to host a joint event in September?

There has been a lot of to and fro around Cannes 2020 getting postponed or cancelled amid the COVID-19 crisis. Earlier, the film festival was announced to have been postponed for time being but according to a new statement, the organisers have acknowledged that “the postponement of the 73rd International Cannes Film Festival, initially considered for the end of June to the beginning of July, is no longer an option."

As two important sidebars of the Festival– Critics' Week and Directors' Fortnight have called it quits this year, it seems like Cannes has the option of going digital this year as a cancellation would result into a huge blow to the world cinema as producers and directors use the platform to premiere their films.

But Festival Chief Thierry Fremaux revealed that he has no plans of going digital.

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In an interview, Fremaux said, “Cannes wants to be present in the fall to contribute to the industry and the reopening of theatres There are beautiful films coming to us from the entire world; we must and we want to shine a light on them so that they can reach an audience when the time comes for their releases this fall. The cinema and its industries are threatened. We will have to rebuild, affirm again its importance with energy, unity and solidarity.”

He added, “I believe that when life will start again, the theatres, the movies will have key roles to play with the public.”

He also revealed that he is currently in talks with Venice Film Festival director Alberto Barbera, so as to combine their festivals and hold it together in September. He said, "As every year, I speak a lot to (Venice director) Alberto Barbera, who is himself worried, obviously. Since the beginning of the crisis, we have raised the possibility of doing something together if Cannes was cancelled. We’re continuing to discuss it. Other festivals have invited us: Locarno, San Sebastian, Deauville. These are gestures that touch us a lot. And in Lyon, at the Lumiere Festival (in October), we have planned to host a number of world premieres as part of the programme”.