´óÏó´«Ã½

Radio 1's Big Weekend, the Champions' League Final, The National Movie Awards, my mate Neil's birthday party - May's a busy month, that's for sure. Oh yes and there's the Cannes Film Festival, the busiest few days for any movie journalist and an eye-popping love-in by the industry that I just can't get enough of. All cinematic life is on display on France's Cote d'Azur for that week and a half, from sleazy Z-list producers hawking around their exploitation DVDs to even sleazier A-list ones with their blockbusters.

Several competitions run alongside the business deals, with a seemingly endless supply of arthouse movies up for awards and a few future classics getting their first look (last year was all about A Prophet, The Black Ribbon and Inglourious Basterds). That said, this year both the indies and the Hollywood big boys seemed thinner on the ground, perhaps coincidence (it happens every now and then) or maybe because of the recession. Let's face it, showcasing your pic, its director and its stars to thousands of press isn't exactly a cheap business. Didn't seem to bother Cheryl Cole though - apparently she picked up a nice £250,000 for playing/miming at one of Cannes famous parties. Lindsay Lohan was kicking around the clubs too, publicising her biopic of porn star Linda Lovelace (which can only be amazing) whilst Paris Hilton made her annual appearance, not really doing anything but skulking about on a yacht. If that's what Cannes means to you then you're not totally wrong, but there's defo more.

Hopefully the International Radio 1 documentary that I worked on out there will fill in the gaps. Enjoy.

Ìý

James King

Ìý