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Stan Smith × Edison Chen
2025 · Nice & Monaco
Executive production on the Riviera, with crew, equipment, talent management and locations.
Filming at Cannes Lions
Cannes Lions puts the advertising industry on one seafront for a week, usually in June. Agencies and brands come to shoot interviews, activations, beach talks and yacht events. We run those shoots from our Cannes base, with Zacharie on the ground.
01
Field note
Cannes in June is not the film festivalEvery year someone sends us a Cannes Lions brief built on film festival assumptions. It is the same town and often the same Palais, but it is a different week with a different audience and a different set of doors. The film festival in May is about red carpets and premieres. Cannes Lions, the International Festival of Creativity, is the advertising industry's main annual gathering: agency heads, brand marketers, platforms and media owners, all within a few hundred metres of each other for a week.
That density is the reason to shoot there. You can film a CMO interview at nine, a panel recap at noon, a beach activation in the afternoon and a yacht reception at night, without moving the unit more than a short walk. It is also the reason everything is booked early: the same beaches, terraces, yachts, hotel rooms and local crews are wanted by every agency in town.
We are a production service company for international productions in France, with bases in Paris and Cannes. For Lions, the Cannes base does the work: Zacharie runs the unit, crew and transport; Élie handles the access questions, the permits and anything that touches the public space or the sea.
02
Who controls what
Know the door before you knockSpaceWho decidesWhat it means for you
Inside the PalaisStages, seminar rooms, delegate areasThe festival organiser, through its own passes and media rulesDelegate or press passes are issued by the organiser. We never promise them; we plan the shoot so it works without them.
Private beachesBrand and agency takeoversThe beach operator, under its concession, plus the brand renting itMost activations happen here. If the brand has the beach, filming is a contract question, not a permit one.
The Croisette and streetsWalk and talks, vox pops, arrivalsThe commune of CannesPublic space needs municipal agreement for anything beyond a light handheld crew. Security perimeters can tighten around the Palais.
Yachts in the portReceptions, interviews, hospitalityThe yacht owner or charterer, port rules for the quayAccess is private. Filming at sea near the coast adds a separate layer.
DroneSeafront and bayCivil aviation plus the prefectureAlways a separate file, and often restricted during big events. See our drone permit guide.
The best Lions content is filmed off the official stages
Agencies often assume the value is on the main stage. In practice the stage sessions are recorded by the organiser, and the footage people actually share is shot elsewhere: a client on a beach terrace, a founder on a yacht deck, a quick interview on a hotel rooftop. None of that needs a festival pass. It needs a location booked in advance, a crew that can move on foot, and someone who knows which terraces are already taken.
03
The logistics crunch
Hotels, crew, vehiclesHotels. Cannes accommodation for Lions week goes early, and what is left is expensive. We often house crews outside the centre, along the coast or inland, and plan the transfers around the traffic on the seafront.
Crew. Riviera camera operators, sound recordists and producers are in demand the whole week. We book them as soon as dates are firm, and we hire locally rather than bringing a Paris crew down, which saves travel and per diems. See crew sourcing.
Vehicles and kit. Parking near the Croisette is close to impossible during the festival. We run small units with light kit, drop points agreed with venues, and a van parked outside the busiest streets. Camera and lighting come from rental houses we use all year: see kit and gear.
Interview slots. Executives in Cannes give short windows between sessions. A shoot that is still setting lights when they arrive loses the interview. We pre-light rooms and terraces before the talent arrives.
The trap. Agencies brief us when their speaker slot is confirmed, which is often weeks before the festival. By then the good beach terraces and the local crews are already holding dates for others. Brief the production as soon as you know you are going.
04
Planning timeline
Indicative, confirmed per projectWinterDecide whether you are shooting at all. Brief us with formats and rough volume so we can hold crew and a unit base.
Early springLock hotel rooms for crew, shortlist beach, terrace and yacht locations, agree which content needs a festival pass and which does not.
SpringTalent and interview list, municipal filings for any street or Croisette work, drone file if needed, equipment booked.
Two weeks outCall sheets per day, venue access times, transport plan around the seafront traffic.
Festival weekZacharie on the ground running the unit, same-day uploads if you are editing remotely.
05
What we do here
From our Cannes baseCannes is a base for us, not a place we fly into. The Riviera is our second base, and our Riviera production service runs shoots there all year for luxury, automotive and fashion campaigns. For Lions specifically, the work is mostly commercials and branded content and fast social and creator content: interviews, recaps, activation films and social cut-downs.
If your team is staying home, we can shoot while you direct over a video link: see remote production.
2025Adidas × Edison ChenCannes & MonacoExecutive production of the Stan Smith campaign on the Riviera during the Cannes Film Festival and the Monaco Grand Prix, talent George Russell.Wrapped
2026Riviera permit packageClient under NDASixteen communes, drone and heritage clearance. Cost cut from €29,900 to €12,900 by restructuring who holds the permits.Wrapped
06
Selected work
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Read ↗Can you get us accreditation for Cannes Lions?
No. Delegate and press passes are issued by the festival organiser under its own rules, and no production service company can promise them. What we do is plan your content so it works without a pass: beach terraces, yachts, hotel rooms and public space, which is where most shareable Lions content is filmed anyway.
Is Cannes Lions the same as the Cannes Film Festival?
No. The film festival is usually in May and is about cinema. Cannes Lions, the International Festival of Creativity, is usually in June and is the advertising industry's main annual gathering. Same town, different week, different audience and different access rules.
Do we need a permit to film on the Croisette during Cannes Lions?
For a light handheld crew doing quick interviews, often not in practice, but anything with lights, tripods blocking the pavement, vehicles or a set needs the agreement of the commune of Cannes. Security perimeters around the Palais can also limit where you stand. We tell you per shot what needs a file.
How early should we book a crew for Cannes Lions?
As soon as you know you are going. Local Riviera crew, hotel rooms and the best beach terraces are booked by agencies well before the festival. A brief in early spring gives you real choice; a brief a few weeks out gives you what is left.
Can you film on a yacht or a private beach?
Yes. Both are private spaces, so access depends on the owner, charterer or beach operator, usually through the brand that has rented it. We handle the location agreement, the crew and the kit; filming at sea near the coast or with a drone needs separate clearance.
Tell us what you need to shoot.
Format, dates, locations, crew size. We come back within three hours with what is possible and what is not.