The festival previously banned «anyone linked to the Russian government,» and that ban applies to much of the Russian media as well
The Cannes Film Festival has declined press accreditation to a number of Russian journalists this year, as part of its stance against that country in the wake of its invasion of Ukraine. According to two Russian journalists who have been repeatedly accredited by the festival in the past but were denied this year, a group of Russian media members who had applied for credentials spoke to Cannes press chief Agnes Leroy late this week. They said Leroy told them that the festival had been “waiting for things to get better” between Russia and Ukraine before making a decision on Russian credentials — but with the festival beginning in less than two weeks, they said that Leroy told them the festival had decided to refuse credentials to all Russian journalists. In an email to TheWrap, Leroy said, “We approved only the medias that are in line with the Festival’s position concerning the situation in Ukraine.” She did not respond to a followup question asking if Cannes had credentialed any Russian journalists. The festival’s position on Russia was spelled out in a statement released on March 1. It read, in part, “Unless the war of assault ends in conditions that will satisfy the Ukrainian people, it has been decided that we will not welcome official Russian delegations nor accept the presence of anyone linked to the Russian government.” The implication, then, is that the journalists who were denied accreditation are “linked to the Russian government” or are official representatives of the country in some manner.
