Cannes Film Festival Workers Call For Strike Action Over Pay Dispute

deadline.com:

The strike is on. After days of tense discussions, we can confirm that the collective French film festival workers we first reported last week have set plans to mount a widespread strike action during this year’s Cannes Film Festival over pay.

The group, known as the Collectif des précaires des festivals de cinéma (which translates to The Collective of Precarious Workers at Film Festivals), confirmed their plans this morning with an open letter sent to Deadline. “In a context of extreme vulnerability and absolute emergency to protect our work, and after consultation and vote of the members of the collective, we call for a strike of all employees of the Cannes Film Festival and of its sidebars,” the group said.

The collective includes up to 200 French film festival workers — a combination of Cannes workers, including those who work on the Official Selection, the festival’s Marché du Film, and parallel sections of Directors’ Fortnight and Critics’ Week — and workers from other festivals across France.

Potential strikers include festival projectionists, press officers, and admin staff. The group’s strike action is the result of two central issues.