The madness has begun. In Cannes, people are already craving for invitations, selecting their gowns, organizing schedules for the screenings and finding time to eat quickly between so many activities. Some hours of sleep? Only if you’re lucky.

The impulse of watching as many movies as possible sometimes blurs the importance of selection. Some prefer to stick to the safe option and watch only the movies by consecrated directors. Others are more curious and want to know more about a new name, a country with an incipient film industry or an innovative cinematographic approach.

For those who come from countries where distribution companies keep a monopoly dominated by Hollywood cinema, Cannes is the occasion to watch those movies that will not -for sure- be released in their theatres. This does not mean that they will only go to the screening with the most “independent” profile; it means that this is going to be their only chance to see the latest Coppola film on the big screen, because lately not even the big masters’ new works have been arriving in regions like Latin America or Africa.

Beyond the glamour, the red carpet, the business, the conferences and the frenzy of the daily activities, it’s good to remember the passion for the films, the good feeling that you get when you watch a masterpiece, and of course, the fact that a lot of cinema addicts in the world are not able to experience this. Watching a good movie is, dangerously, becoming a privilege for few people in the world, and in Cannes we should be thankful for having so many options in the current situation of inequality of access to this art.

Natalia Ames