Cannes Book Giveaway Recap – Thank You for Another Amazing Year
by Alex Billington
May 27, 2024
“Fremaux knows his films, his festival, his audience. His taste is exceptional.” (–Roger Ebert’s notes from Cannes 2009.) At the start of the 2024 Cannes Film Festival two weeks ago, I announced a special giveaway of four signed copies of Matt Singer’s book called Opposable Thumbs: How Siskel & Ebert Changed Movies Forever. Now that the festival has ended, it’s time for a quick recap and a thank you to all those who crossed paths with me this year in Cannes. This 2024 giveaway was a follow-up to my 2019 giveaway, when I originally handed out 10 copies of Ebert’s Cannes diary book called Two Weeks in the Midday Sun. This time the books were signed by the author, making them even more unique as a gift. Of course, I wanted to connect them to Roger Ebert again, and Matt’s book is fantastic – recalling his history as a legendary film critic. All it took to win was finding me at a screening and saying the name of one film – The Brown Bunny. I had an amazing time chatting with my friends and colleagues in Cannes this year. Congrats to the winners.
Photos of the people who received the book at the festival (L-R, T-B): Wellington, Laurent, Philip, & Serena.
It took a few days to until the first winner caught me, but I’m glad these four books were able to find homes with these four lovely people. One of the best parts about film festivals is all the people you meet and spend time with and discuss cinema with. I like arguing about films, I love chatting about what is good and bad, I enjoy all the banter before the screenings. I always make time to grab dinner with my best friends before it’s all over. And I try to make sure all these connections remain strong. I wanted to spread the word on Matt’s excellent book, and I also wanted to meet new people, make new connections, and introduce other friends to each other. The Cannes Film Festival may seem all glitz & glamour if you only look at the red carpet photos and videos from the grand premiere screenings, but there is so much more going on. Tons of film critics, cinephiles, movie geeks, and journalists are also on the ground, in screenings every day, living on little sleep as they queue for the next big debut. Thank you to everyone who took the time to say hi and talk about films with me. Let’s keep this community of passionate film lovers thriving & vibing even after the festival is over.
A very special thank you to Matt Singer for signing these books for the giveaway. And a very special thank you to Roger Ebert for always being an inspiration; even if he isn’t around anymore, even if he isn’t joining us at Cannes screenings anymore, his presence still remains with us guiding us through the world of cinema. Stay tuned for more giveaways – you never know when I’ll be handing out something fun at another festival.
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