Cannes Future of Cinema Panel Was a Fascinating Discussion, Despite Women Not Having a Seat at the Table

variety.com:

Manori Ravindran International EditorThe Cannes Film Festival invited eight male directors for an hours-long symposium on the future of cinema on Tuesday — a session that raised uneasy questions for those working with streaming services, and paid no attention to the lack of female filmmakers on the panel.Moderated by Cannes festival director Thierry Fremaux and Canal+ correspondent and festival associate Didier Allouch, guests included Guillermo del Toro, Claude Lelouch, Costa Gavras, Gaspard Noé, Paolo Sorrentino, Nadav Lapid, Mathieu Kassovitz and Robin Campillo.

The directors were interviewed individually, with Del Toro present on stage throughout.The session — which ran for two and a half hours, with speakers remaining a mystery until the event was underway — is one of two forums about cinema organized by the festival.

A second discussion will take place Wednesday afternoon local time. When asked by Variety whether female directors will be present at the second event, Cannes confirmed as much but revealed little else.

It’s possible the next session could be entirely focused on female filmmakers, though if that’s the case, it’s unclear why the festival would segregate its directors in the first place. (Cannes has a record, albeit paltry, number of women in competition this year: five out of 21 films are directed by women.)Del Toro set up the conversation by saying that film, as a cultural phenomenon, “has shifted in importance and in the place it holds in the culture.” The future, said the “Nightmare Alley” helmer, will present itself “no matter whether we want it or not.”“We can’t enshrine the past and grind to preserve it because it’s not going to hold exactly as it was,” he said.