Watch as stars head out for Cannes Film Festival opening ceremony

Watch as stars and guests leave Hotel Martinez and head to the Cannes Film Festival opening ceremony on Tuesday 14 May.

The excitement that usually builds to a crescendo ahead of the opening night has been reined in this year by rumours of potentially explosive #MeToo allegations and a possible festival workers’ strike that could shut down the event.

Speaking on Monday, festival director Thierry Fremaux lamented an increased focus in recent years on political and social issues in the movie industry, which he said came at the expense of the actual films.

“In the past, people only talked about the cinema. We as organisers only had one anxiety - the films: Will people like them, will people hate them?” he said at a news conference with journalists.

Fremaux made the comment in response to a question about a report in French newspaper Le Figaro last week that said Cannes had hired a crisis management team to deal with possible fallout from a list that could be published of 10 film industry figures who have been accused of sexual abuse.

He added that it felt important to show at the festival the new short film Moi Aussi (Me Too) by Judith Godreche, a French actor who has been a major voice in the country’s #MeToo movement.