How to watch Cannes Film Festival 2023: live stream Opening Ceremony for free from anywhere

 Tallia Storm attends the screening of "Final Cut (Coupez!)" and opening ceremony red carpet for the annual Cannes film festival at Palais des Festivals
(Image credit: Samir Hussein/WireImage)

Watch Cannes Film Festival 2023 live stream

The 2023 Cannes Film Festival runs from 16th - 27th May. The Opening Ceremony, Closing Ceremony and Cannes Film Awards are free to watch on the France 2, France 3, and France 5 channels, each of which can be live streamed on France TV. 

Away from France? Use a VPN to tune in from anywhere. Full details on how to watch Cannes 2023 from anywhere just below, as well as a timetable of events.

Cannes Film Festival 2023: preview

The Cannes Film Festival has helped launch the careers of Orson Welles, Martin Scorsese, Francis Ford Coppola, David Lynch, the Coen Brothers, Quentin Tarantino, and Bong Joon-ho, and Senegalese-French filmmaker Ramata-Toulaye Sy could follow in their footsteps as she goes up against a who's who of Cannes titans with her debut feature, Banel et Adama.

Ken Loach, Wes Anderson, Wim Wenders and Nuri Bilge Ceylan are amongst the more revered and respected auteurs in the world, and they're all in contention for the ultra-prestigious Palme d'Or, the most coveted award in world cinema. 

The Cannes Film Festival is about pushing boundaries, making a statement, standing out as an auteur. However, there's a fine line between pretentious and avant-garde, and just as Cannes Film Festival recognition can launch filmmakers into the stratosphere, there isn't a worse place in the world to produce a dud.

Unfolding over 12 days on the French Riviera, the event, including the Opening Ceremony, Closing Ceremony and Cannes Film Awards is being shown for free by France TV. Not in France? Make sure to you know how to use a VPN to watch a Cannes Film Festival live stream from anywhere.

Watch a free Cannes Film Festival live stream

France: Watch free on France TV

France: Watch free on France TV
The Cannes Film Festival Opening Ceremony, Closing Ceremony, Cannes Film Awards and daily coverage from the event will be televised for free in France across the France 2, France 3, and France 5 channels, which can all be live streamed for free on France TV

In general, you can expect daily coverage at around 7pm CEST (6pm BST) each evening.

Remember: France residents travelling abroad can use a VPN to unblock the Cannes live stream on France TV from anywhere.

Watch Cannes Film Festival 2023 live stream from anywhere

Even if you're from France, you won't be able to watch that free Cannes Film Festival 2023 coverage from outside the country. The service will detect your location based on your IP address, and will automatically block your access.

A Virtual Private Network (VPN) will help you get around this obstacle. It creates a private connection between your device and the internet and can set your device to appear as if it's anywhere in the world. 

We rate ExpressVPN as the best VPN. It offers a 30-day guarantee for all your money back if you're not happy with the service.

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How to use a VPN for the Cannes Film Festival

Using a VPN to stream TV from abroad is incredibly simple.

1. Install the VPN of your choice. ExpressVPN is the one we recommend.

2. Open up the VPN app and choose the location of the service you wish to access. For the Cannes Film Festival, you'll want to choose 'France' for France TV.

3. Then head over to France TV on your browser or device and watch the Cannes live stream free of charge!

You could also try NordVPN, which also comes with a 30-day money-back guarantee, and Surfshark, which offers 24-hour assistance. Both performed very well in our tests.


Can I watch the 2023 Cannes Film Festival in the UK?

There are no UK broadcasters showing dedicated coverage of the 2023 Cannes Film Festival. Some events will be live streamed or available to watch on-demand on YouTube and Brut, but it's a bit of a wild west. 

Don't forget: if you're a France citizen currently abroad in the UK, you'll be able to watch France TV's Cannes Film Festival free coverage from anywhere with a VPN

Can I watch the 2023 Cannes Film Festival in the US?

Similarly, there are no major networks showing the 2023 Cannes Film Festival in the USA, but some segments will be available to stream on YouTube and Brut.

As explained above, if you're in the US but you're from France, you'll still be able to tap into that free France TV coverage if you use a VPN.  

Can I watch the 2023 Cannes Film Festival in Australia?

You guessed it. There are no Australian broadcasters showing the 2023 Cannes Film Festival, but parts of the event will be available to stream on YouTube and Brut.

France resident travelling to Australia? Simply use a VPN to access that France TV live stream without being geo-blocked.

When is the 2023 Cannes Film Festival Opening Ceremony?

The 2023 Cannes Film Festival Opening Ceremony starts at 7pm CEST on Tuesday, 16th May. 

That's 6pm BST / 1pm ET / 10am PT / 3am AEST.

When is the 2023 Cannes Film Festival Closing Ceremony?

The 2023 Cannes Film Festival Closing Ceremony starts at 8.30pm CEST on Saturday, 27th May. 

That's 7.30pm BST / 2.30pm ET / 11.30am PT / 4.30am AEST.

Where are the 2023 Cannes Film Awards handed out?

The 2023 Cannes Film Awards, including the ultra-prestigious Palme d'Or, will be handed out during the Closing Ceremony on Saturday, 27th May.

It begins at 7.30pm BST / 2.30pm ET / 11.30am PT / 4.30am AEST, as explained above.

What are the 2023 Palm d'Or contenders?

Kuru Otlar Üstüne (About Dry Grasses) – Nuri Bilge Ceylan; Turkey

Anatomie d'une chute (Anatomy of a Fall) – Justine Triet; France

Asteroid City – Wes Anderson; US

Banel et Adama (Banel & Adama) – Ramata-Toulaye Sy; Senegal

Black Flies – Jean-Stéphane Sauvaire; US

Il sol dell'avvenire (A Brighter Tomorrow) – Nanni Moretti; Italy, France

La Chimera – Alice Rohrwacher; Italy, France, Switzerland

Club Zero – Jessica Hausner; Austria, Denmark, France, Germany, UK

Kuolleet lehdet (Fallen Leaves) – Aki Kaurismäki; Finland

Firebrand – Karim Aïnouz; UK

Les Filles d'Olfa (Four Daughters) – Kaouther Ben Hania; Tunisia

Le Retour (Homecoming) – Catherine Corsini; France

Rapito (Kidnapped) – Marco Bellocchio; Italy

L'Été dernier (Last Summer) – Catherine Breillat; France

May December – Todd Haynes; US

Kaibutsu (Monster) – Hirokazu Kore-eda; Japan

The Old Oak – Ken Loach; UK, France, Belgium

Perfect Days – Wim Wenders; Japan, Germany

La Passion de Dodin Bouffant (The Passion of Dodin Bouffant) – Tran Anh Hung; France

Qīngchūn (Youth (Spring)) – Wang Bing; China

The Zone of Interest – Jonathan Glazer; UK, Poland, US

Aatif Sulleyman

Aatif is a freelance copywriter and journalist based in the UK. An avid armchair sports fan, he devours everything from football and Formula 1 to tennis, rugby and cricket. If you need to know where to watch the big game this weekend, Aatif can tell you what TV channel it's on and the exact start time (in eight different time zones). Elsewhere, Aatif has written about technology, science and politics for publications such as the The Independent, Trusted Reviews and Newsweek, but he focuses on streaming at Future, an arrangement that combines two of his greatest passions: sport and penny-pinching.

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