As is now tradition, the Film Fund – Fonds national de soutien à la production audiovisuelle – will have a pavilion in the Market village to promote local productions and encourage international producers to consider Luxembourg as a location or to find co-production partners among the Grand Duchy’s 20 companies. The pavilion also serves as a meeting place for players in the Luxembourg industry and representatives of the media. The Film Fund has also given three young local film-makers a grant to attend the market – Jacques Molitor, Frédéric Zeimet and Ben Andrews will travel to Cannes to meet the industry and present their work – Andrews’ film "Dawning", for example, will have screenings in the Short Film Corner in the main Palais du Festival.

Three local companies have films screening in the market – a 10-day event that attracts hundreds of films looking for international sales and distribution and thousands of producers, directors, script-writers and other industry professionals looking for to pitch, sell or promote projects. Paul Thiltges Distributions will present "Räuberinnen", Iris Productions screens "Tausend Ozeane" and World War II drama "Réfractaire", while Tarantula Luxembourg is promoting its latest productions "Verso and Carré Blanc".

International recognition

But it is the official programme screenings of samsa film’s "Ne te retourne pas" starring Sophie Marceau and Monica Bellucci and Melusine Productions’ stop-animation film "Panique au village" that has gotten the local industry really excited. Both will screen out of competition in the Midnight Screenings slot at the Palais, which means a walk up the famous red carpet for the local producers. “These selections illustrate that the Luxembourg film industry produces films whose quality receives international recognition,” says Jean-Louis Schiltz, Minister for Communications.

Jani Thiltges, producer for samsa of Ne te retourne pas says that the Midnight Screening on the opening Saturday of the festival was the dream slot for him and his co-production partners and distributor Wild Bunch. “We had to be in Cannes to get the film launched,” Thiltges explains. With a total budget of 11 million euros – including around one-million for some ground-breaking post-production special effects – the film needs extensive promotion to make money. “Wild Bunch really wanted the Saturday midnight screening, because they saw what a buzz was created a few years ago around Irreversible, which they also distributed. Cannes can make the difference and is absolutely crucial for international sales,” Thiltges concludes.