1. Starting Outreach After Selections Are Announced
The Official Selection announcement in mid-April feels like the starting gun, but the race has already been running for weeks. Top-tier journalists and critics plan their schedules far in advance. By the time your film is confirmed, their dance cards are nearly full. The real work begins in March, with quiet, strategic groundwork laid with key editors and tastemakers, priming them for what might be coming and gauging their interest long before the official frenzy begins.
2. Ignoring the European Press Cycle
Cannes is a global stage, but it is fundamentally a European festival. U.S. publicists often misstep by treating it like Sundance or TIFF, focusing on American outlets with American work hours. European journalists operate on a different clock and have different deadlines. Your
pitch that lands at 10 a.m. EST is an end-of-day annoyance in Paris. Tailoring your outreach to European time zones and understanding the key French, British, and German trades is non-negotiable.
3. Forgetting Press Accreditation Deadlines
You can’t pitch journalists who can't get into the building. Press accreditation for Cannes typically closes a full month before the festival. A common rookie error is focusing so intently on the film and client that you forget to check if your key press targets are even accredited. A core part of your early prep should be building a media list and cross-referencing it with the festival’s official list of attendees as soon as it's available, and reminding your contacts about the deadline.
4. Scheduling Interviews During Premiere Screenings
It sounds obvious, but in the chaos, it happens. A journalist can't be in two places at once. If you schedule your talent for an interview at the same time a major, highly anticipated film is having its first press screening, you’re asking the journalist to make a choice—and you will likely lose. Smart scheduling involves a deep knowledge of the entire festival calendar, not just your own film's screening times. Protect your press from impossible choices.
5. Pitching the Wrong Angle at the Wrong Time
A Cannes campaign has phases. In the run-up, journalists want the exclusive: the first interview, the first official still, the early buzz. Once on the ground, they’re in review mode. They want to see the film first and talk about it after. Pitching a broad, introductory feature in the middle of the festival is a waste of time. Your timeline must be tiered: pre-fest is for access and exclusives, mid-fest is for reviews and immediate reactions, and post-fest is for deeper thematic pieces.
6. Underestimating the Marché du Film
While publicists are chasing critics for reviews, the industry side of Cannes—the Marché du Film—is running in parallel. This is where deals are made. Mistiming your press breaks can hurt a film’s sales prospects. A flurry of bad reviews before sales agents have had a chance to screen the film for buyers can be disastrous. Coordinating with the sales team is crucial. Your publicity timeline should support the sales strategy, not undermine it.
7. Saving Big Announcements for Mid-Festival
Unless you’re a surprise film, dropping a major casting announcement or acquisition news in the middle of the festival is like shouting into a hurricane. The news cycle is dominated by premieres, standing ovations, and scandals. Any news that isn't directly tied to a screening will be drowned out. The best time for major non-premiere announcements is the week *before* Cannes, when the industry is hungry for festival-related stories.
8. Treating All Screenings Equally
A film has multiple screenings at Cannes: the first press screening (often early morning), the official gala premiere, and subsequent market screenings. They serve different purposes. The first press screening sets the tone for all reviews. The gala premiere is for the photo-op and red carpet glamour. A common error is inviting top critics to a later screening after the buzz has already peaked or faded. Your priority list of critics must be invited to that very first screening.
9. Waiting Until After the Festival to Circulate Reviews
The moment the social media embargo lifts and the first reviews land, your job is to weaponize them. Don’t wait to compile a tidy report a week later. Positive quotes need to be immediately pulled and serviced to sales agents to help them close deals. They should be fed to other journalists to build momentum. The 24-hour cycle following a premiere is the most critical window to shape the narrative. Speed is your greatest asset.
10. Having No Post-Cannes Strategy
The festival ends, but the film's life is just beginning. A huge mistake is viewing the awards ceremony as the finish line. Cannes is a launchpad. The days immediately following the festival are the perfect time to pitch follow-up stories to U.S. editors who are now looking ahead to the fall festival season (Venice, Telluride, Toronto). The buzz you generated on the Croisette is a perishable good; you must have a plan to transfer that momentum to the next stage of the campaign.
