Often regarded as the Woody Allen of the West Coast, veteran filmmaker Henry Jaglom's 13th feature is a mostly improvised satire of Hollywood wheeler-dealers with contract-signing fever, filmed amidst the actual machinations of the Cannes Film Festival. The crisscrossing narratives involve an American actress seeking film backing, an ageing screen icon, a slimy Hollywood producer and a has-been filmmaker.

Jaglom provided his cast with a skeleton script and little time to prepare, thus enforcing considerable soul-searching to flesh out their characters. Expertly cast - including Greta Scacchi, Maximilian Schell, Anouk Aimee and a cameo by Peter Bogdanovich (see The Cat's Meow) - the results are highly rewarding.

"A giddy comic fantasy, full of romance, chicanery and beguiling, sophisticated players. What Jaglom has done is to put all the pieces together to create a classic farce." - LA Times

Henry Jaglom (born in London, 1941) spent many years acting on stage and TV before moving into directing with his debut feature A Safe Place (1971). His films include Tracks (1976), Always (1985), Someone to Love (1987), Eating (1990), Last Summer in the Hamptons (1995) and Déjà vu (1997).