Film & Screen Media Graduate Sarah Jessica Dunne reports from Cannes

19 Jun 2024

My name is Sarah Jessica Dunne, and I’m a graduate of BA Film & Screen Media in UCC, class of 2023. I recently had the honour of attending the Cannes Film Festival.

This incredible experience was made possible through my traineeship in the European Parliament with the LUX Audience Film Award team.

I played a key role in organising two key activities to promote our cause at Europe’s biggest film market, Marché du Film. We worked closely with the wonderful team at the European Film Academy to bring these events to life.

Outside of my work duties, I had the joy of attending film premieres, press conferences, red carpets, parties and a ‘rendez-vous’ with Meryl Streep! As you can imagine, it really was a dream come true.

Film highlights of the 77th Cannes Film Festival include the premiere of the hard-hitting yet surreal ‘Bird’ by Andrea Arnold featuring our own Barry Keoghan and the premiere of the explosive film ‘The Surfer’ by Irish director Lorcan Finnegan starring Nicholas Cage. Both films showcasing outstanding Irish talent. To attend a film premiere at the Grand Théâtre Lumière and be sat alongside the filmmakers and actors is an experience like no other.

Things you may not expect about Cannes Film Festival:

1. You can walk the red carpet! If you are attending a film at Grand Théâtre Lumière at the Palais de Festivals, the only way to enter is by walking the very same carpet the filmmakers and stars do.
2. Queuing! Even if you have a ticket, you can expect to queue for at least an hour. If you don’t have a ticket you’re talking anywhere between 5 to 10 hours (and you may not get in).
3. Rubbing shoulders with stars: I did not expect to have a little chat with Chris Hemsworth and Anya Taylor-Joy before they entered a press conference, but if you get there early enough and you know where to go..anything is possible!

Is it worth it? Absolutely. Cannes Film Festival is the leading film festival in the world, and with good reason. My experience at Cannes was a professional milestone but also fulfilled a personal long-standing dream. If you ever have the opportunity to attend (as I'm sure many UCC Film & Screen Media students and graduates will) DO IT!

Check out a little video I made to capture the experience here: https://vm.tiktok.com/ZGeget3As/