Traveling to Cannes
By Amy Cunningham
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As small independent filmmakers, traveling to Cannes for the first time was a test of logistics and luck. If one sets their sights only upon traveling to and gaining access in the festival, it should be called a successful first day. Cannes, after all, is all about getting in.

Day 1: Our tasks: get there, find my festival accreditation pass and see about getting Russ his temporary one. We tested the bus route from Nice on our first trip, but the crowds along the Riviera roadway set us back two hours. From the onset of pulling into town, we were overwhelmed with self important movie types sporting designer sunglasses and brandishing their Cannes passes like metals of honor. Eventually, the bus stopped altogether, so we walked the last few blocks to the town square.

For someone who speaks little French acquiring accreditation can be challenging. One must prove themselves professional members of the film industry. Our first day at Cannes was spent wading through the red tape; the stargazers; the lines and the security checkpoint in pursuit of our accreditation. We surfaced feeling somewhat triumphant, somewhat snubbed. We’d successfully negotiated the most prestigious festival in the world but emerged without Russ’s pass, his golden ticket to pitch an idea to the Short Film Channel.

Day 2: find the 48 Hour filmmakers and staff, obtain Russ’s pass. When we arrived at the Nice train station, a gorgeous 1920s Orient Express train was parked on the track surrounded by a buzzing movie crew. We watched our French counterparts with interest and amusement before pulling away. The sky threatened rain, but our date with the 48 spurred us on.

The train zipped to Cannes in a mere 30 minutes. The tiny streets of the beach town groaned with twice as many people as the day before. As the crowd crushed toward the beachfront convention center, we realized why. The familiar John Williams theme music wafted back and flashbulbs dazzled the red carpet stairs. Indian Jones was premiering and everyone wanted a glimpse of the hero himself, decked out in black tie.

If Day One had seemed challenging, our task now appeared nearly impossible: picking a handful of people we’d never seen, in a vast stargazing mob of thousands. Upon winding our way to the convention center we scoured the crowd, listening for any indication of our people. Russ spotted a group, recognizing the wide-eyed look we’d worn yesterday. He hovered in to listen to their conversation and heard the words: “Superhero genre.” This has got to be them!

After much conference with the 48 staff, we realized that, due to an email snafu, they only had the passes for half of our group. The others, Russ included, would have to go back to the pass office and try again tomorrow. Lack of accreditation meant that Russ had missed his pitching session. Upon an unsuccessful attempt to bum rush the guards at the convention center entrance, our group retreated to a side street cafe. We ended day 2 with drinks and lively conversation with the other 48 Hour filmmakers.

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