More than 20 film festivals around the world will be joining forces to stream movies for free on YouTube, kicking off in the end of May. Due to the current global lockdown, a host of cinemas and annual showcases in Cannes and New York were canceled bringing the annual international film festivals to a screeching halt. The 10-day We Are One: A Global Film Festival will feature content curated by the Berlin, Cannes, Sundance, Toronto, Tribeca, and Venice film festivals, among many others. The festival, starting on May 29, will be a free streaming ad-free event that will include everything from films, shorts, documentaries, comedy, music and conversations.
#Breaking Today we are so proud to join forces with other major film festivals from around the world to announce "We Are One: A Global Film Festival", an unprecedented digital event on @YouTube. Check out & subscribe: https://t.co/ikUrp8imlB. Starts May 29. #WeAreOne #Berlinale pic.twitter.com/48K2b8sMwd
— Berlinale (@berlinale) April 27, 2020
The organizers of the Cannes Film Festival said on Monday they were proud to join in the YouTube event “to spotlight truly extraordinary films and talent, allowing audiences to experience both the nuances of storytelling from around the world and the artistic personalities of each festival”. Other festivals taking part include those in Jerusalem, Mumbai, Sarajevo, Sydney, Tokyo, and London. “One of the most unique and inspiring aspects of the world staying home is our ability to come together and experience an event as one, and We Are One: A Global Film Festival is just that,” Robert Kyncl, chief business officer of YouTube, said in a release. “We often talk about film’s uniquely powerful role in inspiring and uniting people across borders and differences to help heal the world. All of the world needs healing right now,” said Jane Rosenthal, Tribeca Enterprises and Tribeca Film Festival co-founder and CEO, that is also collaborating in this event.
While the festival will stream for free, viewers will be requested to donate to the World Health Organization’s Covid-19 solidarity response fund. A full schedule will be released closer to the event and each film festival will curate its own agenda. We Are One will run from May 29-June 7 on YouTube.
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