With the Cannes Film Festival just a couple of months away, there is a exciting buzz beginning to escalate as the film industry impatiently awaits the world’s biggest and most glamorous film event.

The announcement that the highly acclaimed Italian film director, Nanni Moretti, has been named as jury president for this year’s Cannes Film Festival has added fuel into the frenzy of anticipation about the forthcoming festival.

The 58-year-old film director, producer, screenwriter and actor has a long and successful history with the Cannes Film Festival. In 1994 he won the award for best director for his film ‘Dear Diary’. In 1997, the film director served as a jury member and four years later in 2001, Moretti won the festival’s most prestigious prize, the Palme D’Or award, for his film ‘The Son’s Room’.

Last year the President of the Jury was given to the American actor Robert De Niro. In a statement about the announcement published on Bloomberg that Moretti has been honoured with the Cannes Film Festival’s prime role as jury president, the Italian film icon spoke of his elation about being given the responsibility:

“This is a real joy, an honour and a responsibility. As a spectator, fortunately I still have the same curiosity that I had in my youth and so it is a great privilege for me to embark on this voyage into the world of contemporary international film.”

Since it was founded in 1946 the Cannes International Film Festival quickly became one of the world’s most prestigious and publicised film festivals in the world.

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Chanel showcased their Pre-Fall collection at their annual event, with an India-themed luxury show.

The collection was premiered in the Galerie Courbe at Paris’s Grand Palais on 6^th December. Models were bejewelled with accessories including turbans, head jewellery and jewel-encrusted Chanel bags – male models included.

The guests sat at banquet tables which outlined the runway and set the luxury mood with chandeliers and candlesticks. They also dined using gold-plated cutlery and were served by waiters throughout the show, a definite upgrade from the usual champagne and canapés at fashion shows.

The Metiers d’Art Show was launched in 2003 as a homage to French craftsmanship and Chanel’s seven workshops and despite the high prices, the Metiers d’Art lines are always a success amidst the economic crisis.

Previous shows have followed themes including Paris-Byzance, Paris-Shanghai and Paris Moscow, and the Paris-Bombay collection will be available in Chanel boutiques from May 2012.

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Luberon, basking underneath a perfect Mediterranean climate, which, for centuries, has kept both its cultural and natural assets, is an idyllic region of Provence –perfectly intact. In fact so immaculate and picturesque is the Luberon area in this highly revered region of Provence that since 1977 it has been a listed Parc Naturel Regional.

There have however been criticisms made by locals of the Luberon area, that the Italian-born fashion designer Pierre Cardin has turned the unspoilt area of Provence into one of the most expensive places in France.

In recent years the world famous fashion designer has bought 23 properties in the area, including a splendid castle that aristocrat and writer Marquis de Sade once owned.

In buying so many homes in villages such as Lacoste, the so-called medieval gem of the Luberon and home of the castle which used to belong to the notorious Marquis de Sade, locals are accusing Cardin of turning their one rural village retreat into an enclave for the rich and famous, and having made house prices soar in the area.

Although surely if one owns a property in an area, one would be grateful to anyone or anything that resulted in the value of their property being increased? A family home in the Luberon typically cost well over £1 million and £4 million villas are common.

The 89-year-old fashion designer has also converted several of his properties in Lacoste into art galleries, an act that has led to many locals believing that Cardin is transformed the Luberon from ‘traditional’ to ‘trendy’.

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20 years after Christian Louboutin took the fashion world by storm with his red-soled shoes, the French designer is releasing a book that documents his most striking designs to date.

The book offers a comprehensive guide to the Louboutin label, which is a favourite amongst celebrities such as Sarah Jessica Parker, Victoria Beckham and the Kardashian sisters. Various celebrities are snapped wearing the shoes everywhere, from running errands at the shops, to prestigious red carpet events.

The pink faux leather exterior and the gold gilded pages make the book as much of a masterpiece as the shoes themselves. It also features a 5 piece fold out cover.

Shoe enthusiasts can expect to admire the beautiful craftsmanship of Louboutin’s one-of-a-kind creations, including the “Dita Cabaret” crystal-studded shoes that were designed especially for burlesque star, Dita Von Teese.

The book is also divided into 6 chapters. The first is a biography of Christian Louboutin, the second shows various interior shots of the brand’s international stores, the third charts 20 years of Louboutin design, number 4 takes an intimate look at the designer’s homes in Paris and Egypt, whist 5 and 6 explore his collaboration with director, David Lynch.

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