Darius Kadivar

The 2008 festival features fewer big-name directors than in previous years. Organisers announcing the line-up in Paris said many of the event's favourite film-makers are currently working on new movies.

No Iranian Film in Competion for the Palme D'Or this year. The other categories are yet to be announced.

Actor/Director Sean Penn will be the President of the 61st Festival

See Website:

http://www.festival-cannes.fr/fr.html

Amongst the Big American Names you will fin Clint Eastwood for Changeling and Steven Soderbergh for the much Expected film Che strarring Benicio Del Toro in the Title Role of Ernesto 'Che' Guevara

FILMS IN COMPETITION:

• Three Monkeys (Nuri Bilge Ceylan, Turkey / France / Italy)

• Le Silence De Lorna (Jean-Pierre & Luc Dardenne, France / Belgium)

• A Christmas Story (Arnaud Desplechin, France)

• Changeling (Clint Eastwood, USA)

• Adoration (Atom Egoyan, Canada)

• Waltz With Bashir (Ari Folman, Israel)

• La Frontiere De L'Aube (Philippe Garrel, France)

• Gomorra (Matteo Garrone, Italy)

• Synecdoche, New York (Charlie Kaufman, USA / France)

• My Magic (Eric Khoo, Singapore)

• La Mujer Sin Cabeza (Lucretia Martel, Argentina / Spain)

• Serbis (Brillante Mendoza, Philippines)

• Delta (Kornel Mondruczo, Hungary / Germany)

• Linha De Passe (Walter Salles, Brazil)

• Il Divo (Paolo Sorrentino, Italy)

• Leonera (Pablo Trapero, Argentina / South Korea)

• The Palermo Shooting (Wim Wenders, Germany)

• 24 City (Jia Zhangke, China)

• Che (Steven Soderbergh, USA / Spain / France)