Hello from the 62nd Cannes Film Festival. With many others I am a festival virgin, which if you say in certain parts of the city will get you some very strange looks.

The doom and gloom of the world economy thankfully has not stopped the sun shining upon the world’s  definitive film festival, although I’ve seen the odd ‘For Sale’ sign on some of the 80+ feet yachts moored behind the Palais. Times are clearly tough for the multi-millionaires.

Cannes is a very quaint town that waits, each year, to reveal itself to the world. We arrived a few days ahead of the main festival crowds and have witnessed a dramatic transformation. From a sleepy corner of the Mediterranean to a playground for the rich and famous, Cannes is a place unlike any I have ever been to before.

Over the next two weeks, our photo and video teams will be churning through thousands of photos and hours of footage, editing, compressing  and sending to our clients across the globe. Sadly as much as I would love to stay and soak up some more rays (ahem), my festival time will be cut short due to the UEFA Cup in Istanbul and the Champions League final in Rome.

Until next year …

Digg This!   Tweet This!   Share on Facebook   Stumble It!

This morning is our last working session. We have not been too worried as we only have a bit of finessing to do on our Bridges to Understanding digital story. However, after yet another poorly timed power outage, things start to get stressful! The ambient sound of dogs barking combined with the new transitions do something horribly wrong to our story. We had to spend several frustrating hours trying all variations of sounds until we finally tested it out on another computer. It is perfect now!  As the kids have been saying: “What do computers teach us? Patience.”  We happily turn in our files and take a much deserved break.

It turned out that Lhakpa forgot his uniform, which he needs for the evening’s film festival event. So we took the opportunity to hop on a tuk tuk down to McCloud Ganj so he could pick it up. He is one of the three students that actually has family nearby.

En route we stopped off at the oldest English church in India – St. John’s In The Wilderness. Lhakpa told us ghost stories as we gave ourselves a private tour, viewing the gravestones of residents that had died in a manner of explicit ways.

Further down the hill we met his parents who run a local restaurant. While we waited for Lhakpa to grab his uniform we watched the local wildlife run amok.

We still have several hours before the festival starts so Lhakpa offers to be our guide to a waterfall in Bhagsu, a town a few miles away. Lhakpa is now clad in uniform and totally unsuitable shoes for the long, uphill hike with loose stones on the path.

The hike was worth it. It’s extremely tranquil but freezing so I decline a dip. We returned by tuk tuk to the TCV where final preparations for the Dalai Lama’s visit tomorrow are in full swing.

The main school auditorium was the site for our film festival which was attended by over 500 students including the entire middle school. Needless to say, our students were very nervous! Each student introduced a digital story shyly but with great pride. Every story was greeted by a huge round of applause and some even received laughter. The “world premiere” was deemed a huge success by students, staff and mentors alike! What do you think of our video?

Digg This!   Tweet This!   Share on Facebook   Stumble It!

Deryck Lewis/WireImage/Getty Images – Matt Carr/Getty Images

Rose McGowan supported Fifty Dead Men Walking at The Toronto International Film Festival yesterday in two different red dresses.  McGowan always looks fetching, but red suits her well in more ways than one.  McGowan is still set to star in Red Sonja, directed by her one time fiance Robert Rodriguez.  The two were rumored to have split both romantically and professionally after budgeting problems surrounding Rodriquez’s Barbarella remake, but rumors of disharmony have been denied.  Regarding her casting for the role, McGowan has been overly quoted for saying : “I do have a body made for sitting on a veranda with mint juleps and a parasol.  I don’t know why I always have to save the planet.”  Keep up with the red dresses and we won’t forget it.

Digg This!   Tweet This!   Share on Facebook   Stumble It!

Pascal Le Segretain/Getty Images

A-listers made a splash at the most photographed event in the world A.K.A the world’s biggest runway. Gwyneth Paltrow topped my list in a Chanel gown accented with bows. Who else got my vote for best dressed? Click here to see the chicest of the chicettes.

Digg This!   Tweet This!   Share on Facebook   Stumble It!

Valery Hache/ AFP/ Getty Images

Keeping her porcelain skin in tact, Cate Blanchett shielded her face from the harsh UV rays of Southern France while promoting Indiana Jones and the Kingdom of the Crystal Skull at the 61st Cannes International Film Festival. Note to tan-o-rexics: embrace the pale! It’s chic!

Digg This!   Tweet This!   Share on Facebook   Stumble It!

Andreas Fechner/WireImage/ Getty Images

The leading actresess of their generation, Scarlett Johansson (in Oscar de la Renta) and Natalie Portman (in Rodarte) gave double the trouble (or fun, depending on how you look at it) as they attended The Other Boleyn Girl premiere at the 58th Berlinale Film Festival in Germany. Alison Owen, the producer of the film, told W Magazine,“They were like two friends at school,” of the girls quick and close bond on-set. Are you excited to see these ladies as dueling sisters? Discuss!  

Digg This!   Tweet This!   Share on Facebook   Stumble It!

Dominique Charriau / WireImage/Getty Images

The 58th Annual Berlinale International Film Festival has begun! Bring out the bears, be them silver or gold.

Pictured above is a bit of an odd couple. On your left you have Costa-Gavras, acclaimed filmmaker since, well, like, forever. To your right you have Diane Kruger, actress and hottie since the long-ago times of National Treasure and National Treasure: Book of Secrets! What do they have in common? They’re both on the Jury!

Though she is German, sort of a big star, and showing signs of extraordinary potential, we’re not sure how exactly Kruger ended up on the Jury of one of the most prestigious film festivals in the entire freaking world. Nonetheless, props to her. She’s talented, gracious, intelligent, and her nether regions have never been photographed without underwear in or near a car.

Unfortunately, both Danish director Susanne Bier (After the Wedding) and brilliant French actress Sandrine Bonnaire (East-West, A nos amours) had to drop out of the Jury just yesterday. Bonnaire cited familial issues, while Bier had to rush to the States for professional reasons. 

A related note, brought to mind by discussion of bears – when I saw Cloverfield a couple weeks ago, my moviegoing companion tried a mysterious candy with the moniker ‘Muddy Bears.’ These are gummy bears covered in chocolate. They are disgusting. Avoid. Damn you Regal Cinemas.

Digg This!   Tweet This!   Share on Facebook   Stumble It!