The 2021 Cannes Film Festival kicked off on Tuesday in the south of France with an official photocall for the 2021 competition jury.
The 74th edition of the legendary festival came after its 2020 cancellation because of the ongoing coronavirus pandemic.
Bella Hadid, Jodie Foster, Spike Lee, Maggie Gyllenhaal and more celebrities flocked to the shores of the French Riviera to attend the event.
As tradition dictates, the stars walked the red carpet on the night of the opening ceremony, where the Malcolm X director and Cannes Jury President formally introduced his jury.
The Jury incldes Mylène Farmer, Kleber Mendonça Filho, Gyllenhaal, Jessica Hausner, Mati Diop, Lee, Mélanie Laurent, Tahar Rahim and Song Kang-ho.
The jury is led by director Spike Lee, who is the first Black person to hold the position.
Despite attendees appearing without face masks and posing for group photos, Cannes has made its comeback in a slightly subdued form, with fewer invites given out.
“Festival-goers have been in France for 10 days to do the quarantine, journalists have taken their precautions. It’s all very moving. The cinema world is coming back together,” said film festival director Thierry Fremaux.
Masks will be mandatory in the entire festival area, along with regular COVID testing. And the festival’s director has already announced that he will not be greeting filmmakers and stars with the traditional kisses on the cheeks.
But with COVID-related travel restrictions still affecting various countries, many filmmakers will not even have the option to fly to the event this year.
