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A nude protester interrupted a red carpet premiere at the 75th annualCannes Film Festivalon Friday.
During the rollout of Idris Elba and Tilda Swinton’s new movieThree Thousand Years of Longingfrom director George Miller, a woman reportedly ran onto the red carpet in front of the cameras and took off her clothes. Her chest was painted with the blue and yellow of the Ukraine flag with the words “Stop Raping Us.” She also had blood-red paint in the shape of handprints around her underwear.
Buchanan wrote with the video that “the woman in front of me stripped off all her clothes (covered in body paint) and fell to her knees screaming in front of photographers. Cannes authorities rushed over, covered her in a coat, & blocked my camera from filming.”
A spokesperson for the Cannes Film Festival did not immediately respond to PEOPLE’s request for comment.
On Tuesday, Ukrainian PresidentVolodymyr Zelenskyyaddressedattendees at the opening ceremonyof the French film festival, getting a standing ovation as he spoke about persevering and the power of filmmaking. His remarks come as Russia and Vladimir Putin continue their invasion of Ukraine.
“We continue fighting. We have no choice but to continue fighting for our freedom,” Zelenskyy, 44, said, translated to English, according toVariety. He also added, “I’m sure that the dictator will lose. We will win in this war. Glory to Ukraine.”
Per theAssociated Press, he added, “We need a new Chaplin who will demonstrate that the cinema of our time is not silent. Today, the cinema is not silent. Remember these words. … The power they’ve taken from the people will be returned to the people.”
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“However modest as it is, we join our voices with those who oppose this unacceptable situation and denounce the attitude of Russia and its leaders,” they continued. “Our thoughts go out in particular to the Ukrainian artists and film industry professionals, as well as their families whose lives are now in danger. There are those whom we’ve never met, and those whom we’ve come to know and welcomed to Cannes, who came with works that say much about Ukraine’s history and the present.”
The statement added, “… Unless the war of assault ends in conditions that will satisfy the Ukrainian people, it has been decided that we will not welcome official Russian delegations nor accept the presence of anyone linked to the Russian government.”
“However, we would like to salute the courage of all those in Russia who have taken risks to protest against the assault and invasion of Ukraine,” the Cannes statement continued. “Among them are artists and film professionals who have never ceased to fight against the contemporary regime, who cannot be associated with these unbearable actions, and those who are bombing Ukraine.”
“Loyal to its history that started in 1939 in resistance to the fascist and Nazi dictatorship, the Festival de Cannes will always serve artists and industry professionals that raise their voices to denounce violence, repression and injustices, for the main purpose to defend peace and liberty,” the statement concluded.
source: people.com
