Entertainment

Cannes Film Festival bans red carpet selfies

Violators will not be let in to see the movies, officials said.
Violators will not be let in to see the movies, officials said. Violators will not be let in to see the movies, officials said.

Want to take a selfie on the red carpet during the Cannes Film Festival? Well, now you can’t.

That is the message from senior festival official Thierry Fremaux, who says red carpet selfies will be banned at this year’s star-studded event.

Violators will not be let in to see films, he said.

When festival-goers take selfies as they climb the carpeted stairs to the French Riviera venue, he said, everything becomes “disorganised” and the programme “runs late”.

But as guardian of one of the world’s most glamorous cultural events, Mr Fremaux also has aesthetic concerns: “It’s not beautiful. It’s grotesque. It’s ridiculous. We want to restore a bit of decency.”

He also said recently that Netflix movies will be banned from competition at this year’s festival, which runs from May 8 to 19.