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 [1]

Amongst the Big American Names you will fin Clint Eastwood for Changeling [2] and Steven Soderbergh for the much Expected film Che [3]strarring Benicio Del Toro [4] 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)