Pedro Almodóvar declared at the Cannes press conference for his new movie, “Bitter Christmas,” that “Europe must never be subjected to Trump,” which earned a rousing applause from the international press in attendance. The director was responding to a question about censorship concerns given what’s going on in the U.S. under Trump and in France with controversy surrounding Canal+, whose head threatened a blacklist against artists who signed an open letter opposing the company’s main shareholder.
“This does effect us a lot,” Almodóvar said of censorship concerns before urging artists not to succumb to such fears.
“I don’t want to judge anyone, but I think artists have to speak out about the situation in which they live in contemporary society. It’s a moral duty,” the director said. “Silence and fear is a symptom that things are going badly. It’s a serious sign democracy is crumbling. On the contrary, creators must speak out… the worst thing that could happen would be to remain silent or to be censored. We have a moral obligation to speak out.”
Almodóvar urged his fellow artists “to act as a shield against this madness.” Ahead of the festival, the director called out the Oscars for being blatantly apolitical this year.
