Will The Threat of Tariffs Hurt The Cannes Sales Market?

As I said last week, the ripple effect of the Trump Tariffs would follow Hollywood for a few weeks. Well, as Cannes is set to begin, one of the questions on everyone's mind there is if they'll be affected either now or down the line by the theoretical 100% tariffs that Trump promised on foreign-made films. Let's dive in. So far, it's business as usual at the film market, but the looming threat still hangs overhead. That can make people looking to buy packages worried about their return on investment. IndieWire dug in on this very issue, with producer Jason Michael Berman, at the festival with Spike Lee’s Highest 2 Lowest, saying, “Fortunately, we work in a very educated business, and hopefully they recognize we should not overreact to this,” he continued, “This is what was on the top of the president’s mind, and he made a comment about it, and it just happened to be right before the Cannes marketplace.”So, in short, most people are not worried about accruing additional costs later, even as the tariffs seem like they could just be a tweet away. They want movies that can debut all over the globe and that may see awards and box office success if you put them in front of enough people. They also look at which of these titles could do well on VOD. Everyone I've talked to speaks with confidence in this market. There are a lot of buzzy movies debuting, and people are excited about audiences coming back to theaters, especially to see genre movies. Last year, Anora was the breakout of the festival, and it went on to win a bunch of Oscars. There's a wonder if they can find this year's Anora, especially if you're Neon, who have acquired or shown the Palme d'Or five years in a row. Oh, and on VOD, Anora did another ten million dollars or more, depending on who you ask. These are the goals of everyone attending the market. Aside from the tariff worry, a lot of the buzz at this year's festival is how many commercial movies are playing there. From Kristen Stewart's directorial debut to a new Kelly Reichardt movie, and a Wes Anderson, Spike Lee, and Julia Ducournau....even the latest Mission: Impossible is playing there. Here's a list of some of the buzziest movies for sale: Die, My Love (Director: Lynne Ramsay)Alpha (Director: Julia Ducournau)The Mastermind (Director: Kelly Reichardt)Nouvelle Vague (Director: Richard Linklater)Sentimental Value (Director: Joachim Trier)The Young Mother's Home (Directors: Jean-Pierre and Luc Dardenne)The Chronology of Water (Director: Kristen Stewart)Urchin (Director: Harris Dickinson)All in all, this should be a healthy market that helps 2025 become a good year for film and TV. I'm hoping for some big sales, buzzy titles, and everyone to leave excited for the rest of the year and the markets to follow. Let me know what you think in the comments.

May 12, 2025 - 22:30

Will The Threat of Tariffs Hurt The Cannes Sales Market?

As I said last week, the ripple effect of the Trump Tariffs would follow Hollywood for a few weeks. Well, as Cannes is set to begin, one of the questions on everyone's mind there is if they'll be affected either now or down the line by the theoretical 100% tariffs that Trump promised on foreign-made films.

Let's dive in.

So far, it's business as usual at the film market, but the looming threat still hangs overhead. That can make people looking to buy packages worried about their return on investment.

IndieWire dug in on this very issue, with producer Jason Michael Berman, at the festival with Spike Lee’s Highest 2 Lowest, saying, “Fortunately, we work in a very educated business, and hopefully they recognize we should not overreact to this,” he continued, “This is what was on the top of the president’s mind, and he made a comment about it, and it just happened to be right before the Cannes marketplace.”

So, in short, most people are not worried about accruing additional costs later, even as the tariffs seem like they could just be a tweet away.

They want movies that can debut all over the globe and that may see awards and box office success if you put them in front of enough people.

They also look at which of these titles could do well on VOD.

Everyone I've talked to speaks with confidence in this market. There are a lot of buzzy movies debuting, and people are excited about audiences coming back to theaters, especially to see genre movies.

Last year, Anora was the breakout of the festival, and it went on to win a bunch of Oscars. There's a wonder if they can find this year's Anora, especially if you're Neon, who have acquired or shown the Palme d'Or five years in a row.

Oh, and on VOD, Anora did another ten million dollars or more, depending on who you ask.

These are the goals of everyone attending the market.

Aside from the tariff worry, a lot of the buzz at this year's festival is how many commercial movies are playing there. From Kristen Stewart's directorial debut to a new Kelly Reichardt movie, and a Wes Anderson, Spike Lee, and Julia Ducournau....even the latest Mission: Impossible is playing there.

Here's a list of some of the buzziest movies for sale:

Die, My Love (Director: Lynne Ramsay)
Alpha (Director: Julia Ducournau)
The Mastermind (Director: Kelly Reichardt)
Nouvelle Vague (Director: Richard Linklater)
Sentimental Value (Director: Joachim Trier)
The Young Mother's Home (Directors: Jean-Pierre and Luc Dardenne)
The Chronology of Water (Director: Kristen Stewart)
Urchin (Director: Harris Dickinson)

All in all, this should be a healthy market that helps 2025 become a good year for film and TV. I'm hoping for some big sales, buzzy titles, and everyone to leave excited for the rest of the year and the markets to follow. Let me know what you think in the comments.