Yes We Cannes

I just got back from the Cannes Film Festival, where I had the chance to schmooze my socks off with the rest of the film industry’s hopefuls and helpfuls.  I was out there making contacts with sales agents, distributors, exhibitors, film festivals and other sundry personnel.  Making an indie movie requires a lot of personal energy put towards meeting people and talking the talk.  My throat is only now starting to recover.

I also had the chance to watch a fantastic documentary about every cinephile’s favourite producer, Roger Corman.  It’s called “Corman’s World”, directed by Alex Stapleton, and it’s simply wonderful.  Anyone out there who has the slightest inkling that they should just make a damn movie and hang the consequences will find it inspiring.  Roger Corman attended the screening himself and I even got the chance to shake his hand.  He has a very strong handshake for an octogenarian.

People were uniformly interested in Critical Mass as a project and we’ve had plenty of hits on the trailer, which is great.  Several meetings with sales agents went very well and the follow-ups here in London should be encouraging.  Coming back to the edit after a week in Cannes has me feeling energised and positive.  With the reactions the trailer and the film’s theme have received, I know our audience is out there and I know we can reach them.

For my environmentally-conscious readers, concerned that a trip to Cannes is a bit swanky for a documentary (in part) about ecological impact: don’t worry, I took the train.