Coronavirus Raises Alarms for Cannes as French Government Extends Gatherings Ban to May 311 min read
Reading Time: < 1 minuteIn an effort to contain France’s coronavirus outbreak, the country’s health minister extended on Thursday the ban for gatherings of more than 5,000 people in confined spaces to 31 May, raising concerns about the next edition of the Cannes Film Festival.
France’s ban on large indoor gatherings was first issued on 29 February, but has now been amended. The minister’s announcement also said that the representative of the French State in each region is entitled to “forbid or restrict, including through individual measures, other (smaller) gatherings.”
The extension of the ban to 31 May casts a shadow over the Cannes Film Festival, which is due to take place 12 – 23 May, and even more so for the Cannes film market, which is partly held in a confined space — the Palais — and last year gathered 12,527 participants.
Photo credit: Cannes Film Festival
