“Tonight I’m not here to receive applause and awards, tonight I’m here to give an award,” acclaimed actress and Trophée Chopard godmother Isabelle Huppert told guests a lengthy standing ovation. The Trophée Chopard dinner has become a tradition in Cannes, during which Chopard honors two young actors at an evening on the beach presided over by the official Cannes jury, as well as festival heads Thierry Frémaux and Iris Knobloch.
Huppert was funny and thoughtful in her remarks: At one point, one of the massive diamond earrings dangling from her ear got stuck in her dress, and Chopard co-president, Caroline Scheufele, helped untangle them. “It’s a beautiful earring though,” she joked. Later in her speech, Huppert spoke broadly about the role of cinema in society. “Cinema is not only an industry,” she said. “it is a way of inhabiting the world. I think cinema is a language of peace.”
Odessa A’zion was the first to accept her award and did so in her usual style. She got up on the stage and took her speech, written on a crumpled piece of paper, from her pocket. “I’m not good at this,” she said. She then tried her hand at a few French sayings before thanking everyone. “I’ve never been here before and never thought in a million years that this would be happening the first time that I came here,” she remarked before taking her seat. Connor Swindells took the stage next and dedicated the award to his mother. “My mother’s name is Phoebe. She died when I was very young. Sadly she isn’t able to see any of this,” he said. “She’s an amazing spirit who has been with me all my life.”
At the cocktails prior to the dinner, Ruth Negga commented on how honored she was to be chosen for the jury. Earlier in the day, she got out of one her festival-chauffeured cars and got to walk down the Croisette. “It felt like I was in my own movie,” she said. Other guests of the dinner included Riley Keough, Diego Calva, Andie Macdowell and James Franco. The dinner was catered by two-time Michelin-starred chef Bruno Oger and the evening ended with a live performance by pianist Gina Alice Adlinge. Everyone was decked out in their best diamonds, of course.
