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The 78th Cannes Film Festival is set to kick off Tuesday amid growing geopolitical tensions and US President Donald Trump’s proposal to impose 100 per cent tariffs on international films, with filmmakers coming from nearly every corner of the globe to showcase their movies.
Cannes, where filmmakers, sales agents and journalists gather from around the world, is the Olympics of the big screen, with its golden prize, the Palme d’Or, to give out at the end.
Filmmakers come from nearly every corner of the globe to showcase their films while dealmakers work through the night to sell finished films or packaged productions to various territories.
“You release a film into that Colosseum-like situation,” says Brazilian director Kleber Mendonça Filho, who’s returning to Cannes with “The Secret Agent,” a thriller set during Brazil’s dictatorship.
“You’ve got to really prepare for the whole experience because it’s quite intense – not very far from the feeling of approaching a roller coaster as you go up the steps at the Palais.”
Perhaps as much as ever, all eyes in the movie world will be on the 78th Cannes Film Festival when it gets underway this week.
That’s not just because of the long list of anticipated films set to premiere at the Cote d’Azur festival (including films from Spike Lee, Wes Anderson, Lynne Ramsay, Richard Linklater and Ari Aster) and the extensive coterie of stars set to walk the fabled red carpet (Jennifer Lawrence, Denzel Washington, Robert Pattinson and Kristen Stewart among them).
Geopolitics course through Cannes unlike any other festival. The Cannes red carpet can be as much a platform for political protest as it is for glamour.
This year’s festival will include a dissident Iranian filmmaker (Jafar Panahi), a Ukrainian filmmaker (Sergei Loznitsa) and the first Nigerian production in the official selection (Akinola Davies Jr.’s “My Father’s Shadow”).
First-ever Nigerian film in the category
In the Un Certain Regard category “My Father’s Shadow,” directed by Akinola Davies Jr. and co-written with his brother, writer Wale Davies, stars Ṣọpẹ́ Dìrísù (“Slow Horses,” “Gangs of London”).
The film is set in Lagos in the aftermath of the 1993 presidential election and follows Dìrísù’s father and two sons Remi and Akin, as they attempt an odyssey across the city amid the election’s turbulent fallout.
Davies Jr.’s semi-autobiographical debut feature, produced by Element Pictures in association with Fatherland Productions and Crybaby, already has strong support in the form of distributor MUBI, which snatched up the rights to the film in North America and other territories long before the news of its Cannes debut was announced, lending additional hype to an already buzzy title.
The movie will screen in the Un Certain Regard strand – a competition for debut and ascendant filmmakers. Fatherland says it will be the first Nigerian film to do so.
Reacting to the news, Davies Jr. said in a statement, “This is a testament to everyone dedicated to telling authentic Nigerian stories: from crews, to the countless technicians who power our film industry.
“It honours all those – past, present, and future – who laid the foundation for Nigerian cinema. I’m excited to be an ambassador for arthouse film in Nigeria, and even more excited for our cast and crew, whose talent and hard work truly deserve this spotlight.”
South African film in competition for Palme d’Or
The Palme d’Or is the highest prize awarded to the director of the Best Feature Film of the Official Competition at the Cannes Film Festival, and for the first time, an African director is in the running for the prestigious award.
‘The History of Sound’ by Oliver Hermanus from South Africa will premiere at the film festival, starring Paul Mescal and Josh O’Connor.
Speaking about the opportunity, Mr Hermanus said it was a career milestone.
“It’s meaningful for me. It’s meaningful for the country,” says Oliver Hermanus, speaking from outside Cape Town.
“I was born here and made movies here for most of my career, so I still see myself as a South African filmmaker who’s interested in the South African perspective on things and South African representation,” adds Hermanus. “The competition is something I’ve always wanted to be part of.”
Other African films screening at Cannes
Un Certain Regard
- Promised Sky by Tunisian director Erige Sehiri will kick off the African film premieres on May 14.
- Aisha Can’t Fly Away by Morad Mostafa, a co-production between Tunisia, Qatar, and Egypt, will premiere on May 20.
Directors’ Fortnight
- Enzo by Moroccan-French director Robin Campillo will premiere on May 14.
- Indomptables by Cameroonian-French director Thomas Ngijol will premiere on May 20.
Pavillon Afriques
- Urefu wa Kamba, a Kenyan film by Kelvin Osoo & Miriam KoskeIn, will premiere on May 16 at the Pavillion Afriques at 9 PM.
- Osamede, Nigerian film by James Omokwe, will premiere on May 17 at the Pavillon Afriques, which will take place during the 2025 Cannes Film Market.
