Canceled Cannes Lineup Will Be Announced Next Week

Cannes is still canceled, but that doesn't mean we can't daydream about what could've been. While the prestigious fest will not happen this year due to the coronavirus, festival organizers are still planning to release the names of the films they had hoped to screen. While this may seem futile at first glance, having your film associated in any way, shape, or form with Cannes lends said movie a certain amount of credibility. In other words, it's an honor just to be nominated.

It's a big deal to have your movie selected to screen at Cannes, so it makes a certain amount of sense that Cannes is going to honor the now-canceled 2020 lineup. On June 3, Pierre Lescure, President of the Festival de Cannes, and Thierry Frémaux, the festival's General Delegate, will announce the lineup that would have been at the 73rd edition of Cannes, with the announcement being carried live on Canal+. The titles will also be available online.

While we don't know the full lineup yet, Variety does have the scoop that Wes Anderson's The French Dispatch and Naomi Kawase's Comes Morning are on the list, along with Pascual Sisto's John And The Hole, Danielle Arbid's Passion Simple, Gia Coppola's Mainstream, and Charlène Favier's Slalom. Variety also adds:

The Cannes 2020 list of films will include movies that were initially selected for several sections of the Official Selection, notably the competition and Un Certain Regard, as well as a few titles from Critics' Week, the sidebar dedicated to first and second features. Films considered for the label have a release in the works between June and next May, said Fremaux in previous interviews, adding that others have been given the option to re-enter the selection process for 2021 in November.

Not every film that was initially part of the lineup will accept the Cannes 2020 label. Instead, some will wait to premiere their films at other fests, or might even wait until next year's Cannes. Titles waiting for 2021 include Leos Carax's Annette starring Adam Driver and Marion Cotillard and Bruno Dumont's On A Clear Half Morning.

The entire film festival landscape of 2021 is in a very weird place right now. The Venice Film Festival is still set to happen in September, as is The Toronto International Film Festival, which is where The French Dispatch is likely to premiere now instead of Cannes. But it remains unclear as to how the remaining festivals will deal with new restrictions and fears in the wake of the coronavirus, which shows no signs of going away anytime soon.