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Consider the life of a Cannes jury member - there's basically two activities in her/his agenda:  watching the best international films available at the moment and attending whatever events tickle her/his fancy among the vast opportunities available; this, in a country famous for the excellence of its cuisine, wines and parties. The job, of course, also comes with a tremendous amount of pressure and responsibility.

There have been plenty of soft palettes and bold brights at Cannes 70th Film Festival, but Thursday demonstrated why black and white will never go away. Click for more pics of Diane Kruger, Robert Pattinson and the always-stunning Jaqueline Bisset.

By the time Akira Kurosawa and Martin Scorsese met on the Croisette in 1990, both were already celebrated master filmmakers. Scorsese had one Palme d'Or (Taxi Driver) and one Best Director prize (After Hours), plus three nominations for the Palme (Alice Doesn't LIve Here Anymore, The King of Comedy and After Hours) and one Golden Globe nomination for Raging Bull.

Gallic writer-director Robin Campillo is a major talent to watch. In is feature directing debut, 120 Beats Per Minute which world premiered in Competition at the 2017 Cannes Film Fest, he revisits with passion and compassion his past as a member of the AIDS activist organization ACT UP in 1990s Paris.

Last night at Cannes the women wore pastels perfectly. As the stars entered the Palais it was like magic: the flash of the lights, the press of the crowd, the frantic calls of the photographers – “Over here, Madame, over here”.

The day started in a flurry of actvity - panels, a master class, parties, the massive AMFAR benefit at the Hotel du Cap in Cap d'Antibes - and ended with a surprise: the longest standing ovation of the 2017 Cannes Film Festival. Not for a film: for a TV series.

If you grew up under the spell of Captain Jack Sparrow you will probably  find it difficult to believe that, back in 1990s, Johnny Depp was the muse of independent filmmakers both stateside and abroad, and a regular Cannes fixture - in competition, not to promote some massive blockbuster. Our multi-nominated and Best Actor Golden Globe winner was in Cannes twice with (a young, bold) Tim Burton, in 1990 for Edward Scissorhands and in 1994 for Ed Wood - nominated for a Palme d'Or and responsible for the most coveted promotional item on the Croisette, that year: a black t-shirt with 'Mon prochain film sera meilleur' ('My next film will be bettter') inscribed in giant pink letters.

The 70th anniversary edition of the Cannes Festival has been an historic event and the HFPA helped mark the milestone at the luncheon it hosted with Renault, a star-studded event at the Club by Albane on the rooftop of the JW Marriott hotel. That’s where HFPA president Lorenzo Soria presented Thierry Frémaux, director of the Cannes Film Festival and of the Institut Lumière, with a token of our admiration for the festival’s contribution to the history of cinema.

Some decades down the line, how will the 70th Cannes Film Festival be remembered? From an in-the-moment point of view, this jubilee iteration of the venerable event is being shaped by the forces of new media - streaming platforms, virtual reality, TV-as-cinema - and women. Lots of women - behind the camera, in front of the camera, telling women's stories and universal themes from a female perspective.

By the time Heaven's Gate landed on the Croisette, a trail of rumors, allegations and serious problems was following it like a hound from hell. Hot from the success of 1978's The Deer Hunter - which received six Golden Globe nominations, with Michael Cimino winning as Best Director -  Cimino stirred a bidding war for his next project, the period drama, Heaven's Gate.