Cannes Film Festival postponed from May to July 2021 due to COVID-19 pandemic

Cannes organisers on Wednesday changed the dates for the 74th edition of the film festival due to the ongoing COVID-19 pandemic, moving the schedule from May to July. According to a press release issued on January 27, the festival will now be held from July 6 to July 17, which will be subject to changes depending on the global health situation in the coming months. Earlier, the festival was scheduled to take place from May 11 to May 22. 

It remains under the cloud how the organisers are planning to hold the 74th edition, but they have made their intentions clear that the festival will not be cancelled this year.

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Cannes 2020

Cannes Film Festival was cancelled last year due to the COVID-19 pandemic. The festival was earlier postponed due to the health crisis, but later organisers had to cancel the event because of rising COVID-19 cases and deaths, which had prompted governments to impose lockdowns all over the world, including in France, where the festival is held annually. The 2020 edition was limited to just selection announcement and a subdued version was later held for just three days to celebrate the films. 

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Last year's event was held at the Palais des Festivals et des Congrès from October 27 to October 29, where four previews of films from the 2020 Official Selection, the short films selected in the competition, and the Cinéfondation's school films were screened. Cannes 2020 Special was different in many ways as a black carpet was rolled out for the first time instead of a customary red one to pay tribute to the victims and in protest against terrorist attacks in France.

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The festival was held just for the general public of the city and was held a few hours before the Franch authorities reimposed lockdown to prevent the virus from spreading. The film I AM AFRAID TO FORGET YOUR FACE directed by Sameh Alaa was named the unanimous winner of the Palme d'Or.

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(Image Credit: AP)