Cannes 2022 has begun – but what does the future hold for cinema?

After facing the challenges of Covid-19, what the industry does at this critical stage will have long-lasting consequences for the future, writes Talal Malik

Hollywood megastar Tom Cruise graced the Cannes red carpet for the first time in 30 years to premiere ‘Top Gun: Maverick’ (Vianney Le Caer/Invision/AP)

The world’s most glamorous film festival, the Festival de Cannes, commenced its 75th event on 17 May, and Hollywood megastar Tom Cruise graced its red carpet for the first time in 30 years to premiere Top Gun: Maverick – the sequel to his 1986 blockbuster. It is, therefore, a timely opportunity to take stock of where the cinema industry is and envisage its potential next quantum leap.

Cinema remains the world’s most powerful cultural art form in both its global impact and commercial firepower, but it is at a turning point. After facing the challenges of Covid-19, what the industry does at this critical stage will have long-lasting consequences for the future.

Michael Ovitz, co-founder of Creative Artists Agency, has said that entertainment is “the most cut-throat, competitive, difficult business in the world.” The world’s entertainment capital is, undoubtedly, Hollywood; the pinnacle of entertainment is cinema; and the pinnacle of cinema, from the industry’s perspective, is the blockbuster.