After two years of COVID disruption, it was a welcome return to normality at this years’ 75th Festival De Cannes (17-28 May). Sargent-Disc and parent company Cast & Crew were delighted to have a strong combined representation at the festival, and to produce and sponsor a number of industry events that brought international delegates together.
Attending from the UK were Laurence and Lara Sargent, Co-Heads International at Cast & Crew and Sargent-Disc Directors, were accompanied by Sargent-Disc executives Sarah McKenzie (Business Development) and Emma Hicks (Marketing Manager); from Cast & Crew in the US were Andrew Jablonski (Vice President – East Coast and International Sales), David Benavente (VP Head of Independent Sales and Services), Diedre Owen (Incentive Financing Vice President, Production).
Sargent-Disc and Cast & Crew’s Cannes Festival Lounge at the Grand Hotel on Boulevard de la Croisette, welcomed the steady flow of festival delegates dropping in for meetings, refreshments – and access to those all-important device charging points!
On the Festival’s opening weekend, Cast & Crew with Sargent-Disc co-hosted the seventh International Producers Reception. Taking place at the Members Club, Long Beach on Saturday 21 May, the return of this event after a two-year hiatus gave producers and financiers from across the globe the valuable opportunity to gather in person, strengthening existing relationships and building new connections. We extend our thanks the International Federation of Film Producers Associations (FIAPF), Producers Alliance for Cinema and Television (PACT), The Production Guild of Great Britain (PGGB), Screen Producers Ireland, the British Film Commission and New Zealand Film Commission, for their support for the event.
Sargent-Disc was also delighted to sponsor the 2022 Screen International Cannes UK Reception on 23 May alongside headline sponsor British Film Commission. Welcoming guests to the always popular event, which this year took place on the beach at Le Gray d’Albion, were Matt Muller (Editor, Screen International), Laurence Sargent (Co-Head International Cast & Crew and Director Sargent-Disc) and Adrian Wootton OBE (CEO, British Film Commission & Film London). View photos from the Reception here.
Away from the buzz of parties and receptions, it was a strong year for UK film at Cannes, with five UK features and seven shorts in selection, and the coveted Palme d’Or going to Ruben Östlund for black comedy satire Triangle of Sadness, a Swedish/UK/German/French co-production starring Woody Harrelson, produced by the UK’s Mike Goodridge.
“It was wonderful to be able to meet colleagues face to face again at the world’s biggest film festival, leaving behind the virtual settings of video calls that have dominated throughout the pandemic,” says Laurence Sargent, Sargent-Disc Director and Co-Head International at Cast & Crew. “The production industry has stayed strong throughout the challenges of COVID-19 but the return of Cannes is a real reminder of how worthwhile it is to be able to reconnect again in person.”
“We were particularly proud to see two films supported by Sargent-Disc going on to shine at Cannes. Scottish filmmaker Charlotte Wells’ debut Aftersun, which we provided Payroll, CrewStart, PSL+ and Digital Purchase Order services to, received the French Touch Prize of the Jury in Critics’ Week, and Alex Garland’s latest feature Men starring Jessie Buckley, which we provided Digital Purchase Order support to, had its World Premiere in Directors Fortnight. Congratulations to everyone involved in those films!”
For more information about Sargent-Disc’s Digital Production Office suite of applications, click here.
