chiang and yin
These two were super cute - they were at Cannes to promote the movie “Mongrel” which Chiang had written and directed and Yin co-directed. The film actually received a special mention for the Caméra D’or that year.
It was my first time setting up my own PR shoot at a big festival like Cannes. I’d realized that part of being accredited meant that PR companies just email you non stope trying to get coverage - makes sense. So I replied to a couple, trying not to promise much, before I got a reply from one. During Cannes there are big tents on the beaches which restaurants use, and during the festival some of these are turned into on the beach side interview studios. For anyone doing work that involves interviews and writing this is quite a nice place to be. For anyone involved in visuals, its an awful place to be.
Why? You’re either under the tent which means there is barely any lighting, and with a multitude of other people all doing their own thing, the backgrounds always look messy. But then out on the beach, you have harsh sun which blinds the talent and makes for an awkward place. I’ve since shot here a few more times and found out that the goldilocks zone around the edge is often taken early by a team and sat upon all day. Lesson learnt.
So out in the sun I look them - hunting for any shade at all I found literally a tiny puddle cause by a set of tables which had been moved aside. I stood them in that little bit of shade and did my best. One thing I do like about this set up is that the sane turns into a giant warm reflector, which does a lovely job of filling in any shadows.
It was a 3 minute shoot but it definitely taught me a lot about the world of celebrity PR photography at Cannes.
