Cannes, Couture and Controversy –

Cannes, Couture, and Controversy – The Cannes Film Festival has always been about more than film. It’s fashion, theatre, and spectacle—performed on a red carpet where couture meets cinema. But this year, a new and sudden announcement by festival organisers changed the tone before the first flashbulb even went off: a restrictive dress code, reportedly aimed at limiting overly revealing looks on the red carpet.

The unspoken message? Bare skin and long trains. But what did the industry have to say about it and how did the stars deal with it?

Fashion photographer and longtime Cannes Festival attendee Jason Harrell shared his frustration with the last-minute change: “At first, when I saw the news about the new dress code, I was disappointed. The festival had only recently relaxed the rule requiring women to wear heels on the carpet, and this seemed like another step in the wrong direction—once again telling women what they can and can’t wear at the festival.”

The festival’s history with rigid sartorial rules—particularly those targeting women—made the announcement feel out of step with current attitudes about style, identity, and self-expression.

For Jason, the real issue is nuance—not nudity: “For me, it comes down to a question of taste. Revealing clothing can be worn artfully, as demonstrated by Bella Hadid’s elegant golden sculpture top several years ago.” Cannes, he notes, has always been a showcase for the intersection of fashion and performance. Trying to draw a line between what’s “acceptable” and what’s too much is not only vague—it’s a creative limitation.

“Announcing the new restrictions just a day or two before the festival’s opening was inconsiderate, given how much deliberation and money go into planning show-stopping outfits,” Jason adds. Styling teams, designers, and celebrities prepare months in advance for Cannes. To introduce vague limits on fashion—with the threat of rejection—just days ahead of the event was viewed as disruptive and even disrespectful.

Despite the warnings, a number of high-profile guests chose to defy the new guidelines with elegance and confidence. Among them:

• Heidi Klum’s voluminous gown with a long train
• Cannes Jury member Halle Berry’s bold pink and black color-block gown
• Eva Longoria’s shimmering gold gown with a train
• Pedro Pacal’s revealing armpits

None of them were turned away. “Heidi Klum was not turned away,” Jason notes, “despite organisers having announced that those flouting the rules would be. Just imagine if she had been…”

Their presence made it clear: style spoke louder than the guidelines. It will be interesting to see what stance the Cannes Film Festival will takes on in the years to come.