THE first Cannes festival got under way on September 1, 1939. The next day Hitler invaded Poland, and the festival was hastily abandoned.
It returned in 1946, although for financial reasons there was no event in 1948 and 1950. In 1968, the festival was again cancelled after eight days because of the unstable political climate in riot-torn France.
The festival has since blossomed over the years into one of world cinema's major selling grounds. Some 50% of industry business is conducted every year as international buyers congregate to snap up the produce on offer.
The best film, as nominated by a panel of judges, is known as the Palme d'Or winner. Previous winners have included Under Satan's Sun, Dancer in the Dark and David Lynch's Wild at Heart.
Among the contenders at this year's festival are the Coen brothers' remake of Ealing classic The Ladykillers, starring Tom Hanks, Michael Moore's Fahrenheit 9/11 and the cartoon Shrek 2, the follow-up to the massively successful original.
The president of this year's jury is Quentin Tarantino, himself a former Palme d'Or winner with Pulp Fiction.
