Cannes Film Festival inches forward on gender parity, but Netflix remains shut out
To hear it from the most vocal critics in attendance, last year's Festival de Cannes was an event of unforgivable scarcity. There were no Netflix movies, due to the festival's ongoing "feud" with the streaming service; there were not enough American directors or Hollywood stars; and, as usual, there were not enough movies directed by women represented in the competition for the Palme d'Or, considered the highest honor in world cinema.
As of Thursday morning, when festival general delegate Thierry Fremaux unveiled the 2019 official selection at a Paris news conference, Cannes and Netflix have yet to come to a resolution. But on the other two fronts, the numbers have shifted.
Four films directed by women - Mati Diop's "Atlantique," Jessica Hausner's "Little Joe," Celine Sciamma's "Portrait of a Lady on Fire" and Justine Triet's "Sibyl" - have been selected to compete for the Palme and other jury prizes, marking a slight improvement on the usual two or three,
