The announcement of the 77th edition of the Cannes Film Festival marks the largest Canadian presence at the festival in the last 12 years. More than 300 Canadians from across the country will be on the Croisette from May 14 to 25, 2024.
In the official selection, Ali Abbasi’s The Apprentice (his third film in the official selection at Cannes) and David Cronenberg’s The Shrouds (his seventh film in the official selection at Cannes) have been selected for competition. In the short film competition, Perfectly a Strangeness by Alison McAlpine is in the running. Telos I by Emil Dam Seidel and Dorotea Saykaly, and The Roaming by Mathieu Pradat have been selected for the new immersive competition. Finally, out of competition, Rumours by Guy Maddin, Evan Johnson and Galen Johnson is part of the selection.
In addition, the parallel sections of the Directors’ Fortnight and Critics’ Week include Une Langue Universelle (Universal Language) by Matthew Rankin and Alazar by Beza Hailu Lemma.
The films Rumours, The Shrouds, and Une Langue Universelle (Universal Language) received funding from Telefilm Canada.
“Canadian talent shines brightly at Cannes,” said Julie Roy, Executive Director and CEO of Telefilm Canada. “This year’s outstanding representation reflects the artistic excellence of a variety of talents, from the most experienced to the emerging, and the incredible diversity of the stories they tell us, in all their forms. This is what characterizes our national cinematography, which resonates and captivates audiences around the world. This exceptional year also demonstrates the growing interest of other countries to collaborate with Canada. It’s truly stimulating to see this openness of working together, strengthening our cultural and creative ties, and enriching our global film scene!”
In addition to the Cannes Film Festival, the large Canadian delegation will also be taking part in the Marché du Film (featuring 27 Canadian titles), playing a key role as project promoters. This active participation will enable Canadian film professionals to connect with potential partners, develop new projects and explore opportunities to collaborate on an international scale. This reflects Canada’s commitment to promoting its audiovisual industry and strengthening its ties with the global film community.
Sphere Films today confirmed David Cronenberg’s highly anticipated The Shrouds will have its world premiere in the Official Competition at the Festival de Cannes in May. The film starring Vincent Cassel (La Haine, Irréversible, Black Swan), Diane Kruger (Inglourious Basterds, In the Fade), Guy Pearce (Memento, LA Confidential, The Hurt Locker) and Sandrine Holt (Daredevil: Born Again, House of Cards) will open in theatres across Canada later this year.
The Shrouds is written and directed by David Cronenberg (Crimes of the Future, A History of Violence, Eastern Promises, Crash) and produced by Martin Katz for Prospero Pictures (A Dangerous Method, Cosmopolis, Maps to the Stars), Saïd Ben Saïd (Elle, Maps to the Stars, Last Summer) and Anthony Vaccarello for Saint Laurent (Strange Way of Life, Trailer of the Film That Will Never Exist: “Phony Wars”). This is the seventh time that a David Cronenberg film has been selected to compete in Cannes. His films have previously won a Special Jury Award (Crash) and Best Actress Award (Maps to the Stars). The Shrouds also reunites Cronenberg with Cassel, who previously collaborated on Eastern Promises and A Dangerous Method.
“Being selected for the Cannes Film Festival is an immense honour, but to return for the seventh time is incredibly humbling. I look forward to sharing this film with the world on such a prestigious stage,” said David Cronenberg.
Shot on location in Toronto in 2023, The Shrouds tells the story of Karsh, 50, a prominent businessman. Inconsolable since the death of his wife, he invents GraveTech, revolutionary and controversial technology that enables the living to monitor their dear departed in their shrouds. One night, multiple graves, including that of Karsh’s wife, are desecrated. Karsh sets out to track down the perpetrators.
“The Shrouds is an audacious and human film, so apt for our times,” said Martin Katz of Prospero Pictures. “It also marks our fifth collaboration with David Cronenberg and our second collaboration with Saïd Ben Saïd, both lasting relationships and deep friendships of which we are very proud.”
The Shrouds is produced by Martin Katz for Prospero Pictures, Saïd Ben Saïd, and Anthony Vaccarello for Saint Laurent in association with Telefilm Canada, Ontario Creates, Eurimages, and Canal +.
ABOUT SPHERE FILMS
One of Canada’s foremost distributors, Sphere Films serves both the local and international markets with premium content across all genres. Sphere Films delivers the best of Canadian and international cinema, including the Academy Award-winner for Best Picture, Bong Joon-Ho’s Parasite. Other recent releases include the critically acclaimed films Crimes of the Future and Portrait of a Lady on Fire, Academy Award-nominated The Worst Person in the World, the Quebecois produced Arsenault et fils and Maria Chapdelaine. The Sphere Films brand belongs to Sphere, a Canadian film and television industry leader with offices in Montréal and Toronto.
ABOUT PROSPERO PICTURES
Prospero Pictures is the film and television production company founded by Martin Katz, whose credits include Hotel Rwanda, which was nominated for three Academy Awards and three Golden Globe Awards. For over two decades, Prospero has produced films with celebrated director David Cronenberg, including A Dangerous Method, which had its world premiere in competition at the Venice Film Festival, Spider and Cosmopolis which premiered in competition at the Cannes Film Festival, and Maps to the Stars, for which Julianne Moore received the Best Actress Palme d’Or at Cannes. Prospero’s television projects include Ice Road Truckers, one of History Channel’s highest-rated documentary series and Spectacle: Elvis Costello with…, an award-winning music and performance series hosted by Elvis Costello with appearances by Bono, Sting, Bruce Springsteen, Sheryl Crow, Herbie Hancock, Rufus Wainwright, Renée Fleming and Diana Krall, co-produced with Rocket Pictures’ David Furnish and Sir Elton John.
ABOUT SBS PRODUCTIONS
SBS Productions was founded by the French-Tunisian film producer, Saïd Ben Saïd, in 2010.
SBS is driven by a commitment to produce authors internationally renowned and finds its unity through the advocacy of a cinema that is both demanding and accessible. Its most recent productions received awards throughout the world, among which Paul Verhoeven’s Elle which won the Best Foreign Picture at the 2017 Golden Globes, Nadav Lapid’s Synonyms which was awarded with the 2019 Golden Bear at the Berlinale and Kleber Mendonça Filho’s Bacurau which received the 2019 Jury Prize in Cannes, Ira Sachs’ Passages which was selected at Sundance festival in 2023 and Catherine Breillat’s Last Summer, which premiered in the Competition at Cannes 2023.
ABOUT SAINT LAURENT PRODUCTIONS
Saint Laurent Productions is a registered subsidiary of the house, marks the first fashion house to count the full-fledged production of films among its activities. The division, envisioned by Anthony Vaccarello for Saint Laurent, is in line with Vaccarello’s assured steering of the brand into the future, while echoing the cinematic breadth and nuances of his collections.
For advertising opportunites please contact mrwill@mrwillwong.com