The Cannes Film Festival and Market has published a “stay safe” plan outlining Covid protocols for attendees amid the pandemic.
Protocols for the Riviera event, which is set to run July 6-15, will include mandatory face coverings, reformatted queues and circulation to ensure social distancing, a 24/7 Medical Concierge Service, and a Covid-19 screening center to carry out testing.
The festival adds that “all decisions regarding access protocols (Covid-19 tests, temperature checks, etc.) and capacity limitations will be decided” nearer the time “based on the recommendations from government and local authorities.”
Cinemas have reopened in France this week (as have bars and restaurants for outdoor service) with social distancing in place.
As part of its “stay safe” plan, organizers have also published a new document issued by the French government regarding protocols at national trade events in July.
The document, dated May 18, says that “the use of a ‘health pass’ is mandatory for all events with more than 1,000 visitors or delegates.”
The document clarifies that masks will be mandatory “when traveling indoors and outdoors; masks must cover the nose, mouth and chin at all times. It must also be a standard-issued (or surgical) mask, in excellent condition, with a filtration rate of over 90%.”
Pavilions and cocktail events will be permitted on the beaches in Cannes but according to the government documents these will also be subject to additional protocols.
“Stand-up consumption is permitted outside or under tents (seaside terraces). However, dishes or plates resulting in the mixing of food between more than one guest is not permitted. When guests are seated at a table, masks must always stay worn until the first course is served…when applicable, menus will be presented in a form that avoids sharing or reusing between guests (e.g. digital menu, single-use/disposable menu, QR code).”
Bearing in mind that the Carlton and Marriott hotels in Cannes are both closed this year to boot, it will certainly be a very different festival to the one we’re all used to.
France recorded 17,210 new Covid cases yesterday and 198 deaths.
Foreign tourists are expected to be allowed to enter the country starting June 9 if they have a vaccination certificate or PCR test. From June 30, night curfews and most other restrictions will be lifted if infection rates are kept under control, though Covid-19 protocols will remain in place in public spaces. Nightclubs will stay closed.
Travel remains restricted into and within the European Union. But EU ambassadors have backed proposals this week to reopen borders for non-essential travel from countries with low infection rates, with a list to be agreed this week.