Here's Why Cannes Film Festival Was Postponed And Not Canceled

Last week, the organizers of the Cannes Film Festival announced that the prestigious festival will be postponed due to the threats posed by the deadly coronavirus. The decision was taken after the French government issued strict guidelines to ensure that no large gatherings would take place until the situation gets better. As soon as the news of postponement surfaced online, many believed that it would be canceled.

But now it seems that the organizers are doing everything that they can to ensure the movie enthusiasts that the festival will not be canceled as they are planning to go ahead with the festival in June if the government allows them to.

On the FAQ page of the festival’s website, the organizers tried to answer all the questions that people have in their minds after the rescheduling of the event. Responding to the question of why the event was postponed and not canceled, the organizers stated that they discussed the issue with every stakeholder and every single one of them asked the organizers to not “cancel” it because the film festival plays an important role in the “economy” of the “world cinema.”

The festival also said that it was “necessary” to investigate all the routes that would allow it to postpone rather cancel the event.

“No one knows what will happen in the near future, but Cannes must work towards solutions with the sector stakeholders who wish the event to take place,” the festival said.

Most of the organizations have allowed their employees to work from home and practice social distancing to prevent the spread of the virus. Cannes has also given its employees the liberty to work from their respective places as their offices continue to remain shut. The organizers also announced that the deadline for the film submissions has also been extended and will announce the official selection just one month before the new dates.

More than 29,000 positive cases and 1,696 deaths due to COVID-19 have been reported in France. However, more than 4,900 people have recovered from the deadly disease, as well. On the other hand, the life-threatening virus continues to wreak havoc in various parts of the world. The total number of positive cases has gone up to 531,806 and 24,037 people have lost their lives due to the illness.

Meanwhile, the U.S. has now overtaken China and Italy in the total number of coronavirus cases. The country saw 17,166 new cases in 24 hours, taking its tally to 85,377.