FilmFestivals.com Asian correspondant
Fanfan Ko

The Cannes International Film Festival, as well as the Oscar and the Berlinale, are considered in Asia the most important events of world cinema. Although the films and stars appearing in the Oscars are much more familiar to the Asians because of Asia becoming such an English-speaking world, Cannes spreads its charm by offering varieties of vision of different nationalities, different culture and stunning thoughts.

The annual Cannes festival based in that beautiful city in sunny May is also known for its exotic ambience, which is filled with wild and fantastic imagination. As it is so wide-open to all kinds of styles and varieties, the results of the competition are usually non-predictable; even the medias spend months preparing for the whole event.

Cannes has been made known since the early 90's in China as Gong Li (The Story of Qiu Ju), Zhang Yimou, Ge You (To Live) and Chen Kaige (Farewell My Concubine) launched themselves into international prominence in the world of cinema by winning the Palme d'Or. In the late 90's, Chinese cinema showed more and more frequent appearances at the event. As part of that presence, Hong Kong cinema, which tends to be some kind of fringe, joined the winners' list when Wong Kar-wai won the best director for his Happy Together, while in the same year the Chinese actress Gong Li voted as one of the jury members. As a matter of fact, the talented Chinese cineasts have grabed over many an honor-- best picture, best director, best actress, best actor and even being a jury member. All of these have urged the local medias to make special editions covering the festival annually for the anxious audiences.

The Japanese cinema grew up by the winning announcements in the Cannes as well. There is a Tokyo-IFF in the country, but nothing compares to being approbated by the Western countries anyway. Medias are mad for the annual event.

Eyes on Cannes has become an integral part of the world of cinema. Orientals do pay more and more attention to what is happening in that little sunny city thousands of miles away to the delight of the Oriental aspirations. People here are talking about a French dream with eyes wide open for stimulation and saying "bonjour" whenever they meet at a theater.